


Avengers Assemble: Loki's Redemption

by Blackwingcrow



Series: Avengers Assemble [1]
Category: Captain America (Movies), Iron Man (Movies), The Avengers (Marvel Movies), The Avengers (Marvel) - All Media Types, Thor (Movies)
Genre: Action/Adventure, And the phrase 'Avengers Assemble!', Arguments, Feels, Humour, Lots of fight scenes, Potential epicness, Sarcasm
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2013-08-26
Updated: 2013-09-08
Packaged: 2017-12-24 17:25:13
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 8
Words: 46,699
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/942600
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Blackwingcrow/pseuds/Blackwingcrow
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>One year has passed since the Manhattan incident and now a new threat of invasion sends Earth in to another war crisis, by an even greater foe than the last. The ultimate price of failure, is obliteration by a force said to be unstoppable. This time, two Gods are needed to help them prevent the chaos that threatens to destroy everything in existence. Redemption however, is a hard path to stroll upon. Get ready for more mischief. More trickery, but with less lies.</p><p>United, the Avengers and Loki stand. Divided they all fall.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Setting up to Walk The Path of Redemption

Avengers Assemble: Loki's Redemption

Chapter 1: Setting up to walk The Path of Redemption

_"I could have done it father, I could have done it!" Loki cried as he desperately clung on to the end of Gungnir; his only lifeline that was being held be his brother, Thor. "For you… for all of us…" his voice trailed off. His looked at his father, staring into his one good eye; this look was like that of a small child and once again, Loki felt like the small boy that was trying to impress his father. He sent Odin a pleading look as if willing his father to say that he was proud of him._

_"No, Loki" the Allfather said firmly, but a small amount of regret could be detected in his voice._

_The God of Mischief's eyes widened, but then his expression seemed to change to one of understanding, but what Loki seemed to understand was wrong. He thought that because of what he had done, Odin didn't want him as a son any more. With one last look of regret into his brother's eyes, Loki loosened his grip on Gungnir, "Loki, no" Thor said, with a very worried expression on his face._

_Loki then let go of the mighty staff and gave his brother an apologizing look before turning to fall into the abyss head on._

_"NO!" Thor yelled, as he helplessly watched Loki disappear into the abyss…_

The God of Mischief opened his eyes and sat up on the uncomfortable prison cell bed, his forehead was slightly sweaty; he'd been having this dream play out in his head since Thor brought him back to Asgard after his defeat a year ago and quite frankly, he was sick of it. The God of Mischief heard footsteps approaching his cell and glanced over to the bars to see who it was.

It was Thor.

 _I should have known_ , Loki thought. His step brother had come to visit him once again in his imprisonment, which has been after he had been stripped of his magic and his title as a prince of Asgard. The God of Thunder had come to visit his cell every day for the past year without fail and stay for a while, sometimes for quite a few hours. At first, Loki had ignored him completely, but after about a month, he began to talk to Thor, asking him about how things were in Asgard, since obviously he couldn't receive the day's news unless he was told. Even though he talked to his older step brother, Loki still held a lot of hate for him, since he still believed that he was and still is, loved more, but deep down in his heart, he had forgiven Thor and his father a long time ago.

The guard unlocked the door to the cell and opened it for the God of Thunder, who then stepped inside and walked over to Loki. "You are early today, why?" Loki asked.

Thor didn't answer for a few seconds; he was a little speechless and there seemed to be something bothering him, but then he found the courage to speak up, "Brother, our father he… he wishes to speak with you."

The younger God didn't seem surprised; he knew that this day was bound to come up at some point, but he had wondered why Odin hadn't requested his presence earlier, instead of locking him up in a cell for a year. Loki stood up and looked Thor in the eye, "He is not my father; he never was. Just like you are not my brother." The God of Mischief spat, before walking to the guard that stood holding the cell door open.

Thor was deeply hurt by Loki's comment and he kept on wondering how he could make up to his brother; he had been thinking about it since the incident a year ago and so far he'd had no luck incoming up with a solution.

The guard held up a pair of shackles and Loki held out his arms, waiting for them to be bound. There was no point in him struggling; Loki didn't have Thor's brute strength and he had been stripped of his magic when he had first got to Asgard a year ago.

Just before the guard put the shackles on the younger God, Thor spoke up, "Those will not be necessary." The guard nodded and lead the two Gods out of the dungeons and to the throne room where Odin awaited.

As they walked up the great marble staircases of the Asgardian palace, Loki couldn't help but wonder what form of death the Allfather had planned for him. He had been waiting for his death for an entire year and that in itself has been torture. He wondered if he would he be brutally tortured until he gave in to death's cold embrace? Or perhaps he would meet his end at the hands of the man he had once call father? Either way, Loki had a feeling that his demise would not be at all pleasant.

Thor watched his brother ascend the great staircase; he still walked with an elegant step and a confident look, ready to accept what Odin was to say whatever it may be. Despite this, Thor could see that under all of the confidence that Loki portrayed, the God of Mischief was nervous about seeing Odin, no matter how much he tried to hide it. Loki had always been a master of lying; no matter what the lie was, he could always pull it off and fool everyone, with the exception of Odin, Heimdall and in some cases, Thor and Frigga.

Even though the Allfather had ordered Thor to retrieve Loki from the dungeons, he had not told the God of Thunder why. Thor had prepared for the worst and should Odin sentence Loki to death, Thor was prepared to do everything in his power to make sure that did not happen, even if he had to challenge his father for his crown.

* * *

As soon as they made it to the throne room, the first thing that Loki noticed was that every single citizen of Asgard was gathered in the great space. Silence swept across the room when the Asgardians caught sight of Loki and all eyes fell upon him, so it is to be a public execution? So be it, the God of mischief thought as he descended the small golden staircase.

Loki was forced to walk the full length of the silent hall with the whole of Asgard staring at him, their eyes filled with hatred; he hated it; the dead silence, the unwanted attention. Was this to be some form of torture before his true punishment was dealt out? Because if it was, then it was definitely working; they looked at him like he was some sort of monster; a creature that needed to be locked up or destroyed and void of all emotion. This is exactly what Loki considered himself to be, but for others to think that of him, hurt him deep down, although he would never admit it.

Loki stopped walking when he reached the other small staircase at the far end of the hall; the one that lead up to Odin's throne. He was forced down onto his knees by the guard that had collected him from the dungeons, who then took his place among the other guards that were stationed on either side of the aisle, feeling assured that the God of Mischief could not escape with the whole of Asgard around.

Thor, who was reluctant to leave his brother's side (he would always call Loki his brother, no matter what) eventually took his place. He stood on the steps just below Frigga, exactly where Loki himself once stood. Below Thor, stood the Lady Sif; Loki had never been best of friends with Sif, or the Warriors Three-who were standing opposite Frigga, Thor and Sif- for that matter, but they had a certain degree of friendship, but that of course had been crushed when Loki took the throne of Asgard.

The God of mischief looked up and stared at the Allfather, waiting for his punishment with a mask of indifference. However, anyone who knew well would be able to see the slight fear in his eyes at seeing Odin once again.

The Allfather stood up and looked down at Loki, ready to pass his judgement; he too wore a mask of indifference, just as he always did, but this time it seemed to be different; there seemed to be a miniscule amount of regret in his eyes, but Loki thought that he was just seeing things. "Loki… Odinson," the mentioned God opened his mouth to object to the false second name, but he was silenced by Odin, "Allow me to speak, my son."

Loki visibly cringed at the Allfather's words, but kept silent.

"Your crimes committed against both Asgard and Midgard, are punishable by death-"

"Then just sentence me already!" Loki exclaimed, "Sentence me to the death that you know damn well I that I deserve! Kill me, like the monster I am. I don't care how slow it is or how painful it is, just end my life. I know you want to." Loki paused for a split second, "Have I not suffered enough this past year, waiting for death's embrace? Waiting for you to announce my demise was torture enough, so just kill me now and be done with it!" the God of mischief yelled. A pained expression tore across his face; it was similar to the one that he'd had after he had yelled at Odin to tell him of his true heritage, but this time it was more distraught.

The Allfather looked into Loki's emerald eyes; they were pleading for death, a death that he had long expected. A death that Odin would not give, "No, Loki" the Allfather said. Thor felt utter relief wash over him, as did Frigga. A set of whispers broke the silence that had dwindled in the air for a few seconds. These whispers, however, were stopped by the sound of Gungnir tapping on the golden floor of the throne room. Silence washed over the room once again, "Your crimes may be punishable by death," Loki hung his head, "However, I am partly to blame for your actions."

A loud gasp that was shared by the Asgardians filled the throne room. Loki's head shot up so he was looking straight at Odin, "Allfather, you are not the one who should be blamed, I-"

"Silence, Loki" Odin commanded. The young God instantly obeyed, but kept his gaze fixed on the Allfather, "I am to blame. I should have told you of your true heritage a long time ago, instead of keeping the truth from you and having you accidentally stumble across it during your journey to Jotunheim. If I am correct, that is what filled you with hate and lead you to take the actions you took. Am I correct?" The God of Wisdom asked.

Loki muttered his answer and not even those who were nearest to him could hear it.

"Speak up, my son, it matters not what your answer is."

"Yes, you are correct," Loki said quietly, but loud enough for everyone to hear. Odin seemed to approve of his son's answer and looked like he was smiling ever so slightly, but this could have just been an illusion. Which one it was, Loki did not know, but he did not care for that, he was more focused on what Odin was going to say next.

"Loki," Odin began, "My son. I am deeply sorry for all the pain you have suffered at my hand, I should have known better; I was foolish in my actions and I beg for your forgiveness." The Allfather's apology was genuine and his expression was solemn.

Loki's eyes widened; if anything, he had not expected to receive an apology from Odin at all, let alone to see him give him an apology in front of the entire population of Asgard. "I… I forgive you" the Trickster said, as a tear slid down his right cheek.

"Stand, Loki, there is no need for you to kneel here."

Loki tried to stand up, but he found that he was still a little too shocked about this sudden turn of events and only made it up onto one knee. Only a small while ago was he locked in the dungeons of the place and now he was a free man? This is certainly something he hadn't anticipated.

Thor walked down the golden staircase and stood in front of Loki with his hand outstretched, smiling at him. The God of Mischief looked at Thor directly in the eyes, judging whether to accept it or not; the God of Thunder nodded, urging Loki to accept his gesture. The younger god smiled and grasped Thor's forearm.

Thor pulled Loki to his feet. The God of Mischief nodded his thanks and Thor clapped him on the shoulder with his left hand, before moving to stand next to him; the way he stood clearly told his father that he didn't want to leave Loki's side. The Allfather seemed to acknowledge this and a small amount of pride for his sons' re-established bond as brothers could be seen by his slight smile.

"Loki," Odin started. He walked down the small, golden staircase, his footsteps echoing in the ancient and silent hall until they came to a halt. The God of Wisdom stopped when he stood on the last step and looked directly at the God of Mischief, still smiling a little. "Odinson. In the name of my father and his father before, I, Odin Allfather, return to you your power." Odin tapped Gungnir on the floor.

Loki felt an invisible force hit him square in the chest. He staggered back a bit and looked at his hands; he could feel a slight tingling sensation throughout his whole body, but mostly in his fingertips. He felt powerful again with his magic coursing through him.

His magic had a certain warmth to it, even though he was a Frost Giant and not even the coldest part of Jotunheim could eradicate that warmth. Loki looked up at Thor, who just smiled at him. The younger God turned his gaze back to Odin, who signalled for a guard holding a large, black staff, which had a glowing blue crystal set on top of it, in between two extremely sharp blades that curved outwards. The staff wasn't just an ordinary colour of black, it was literally as black as the void; taking in all light and giving none in return. In a way this reflected what Loki had acted like a year ago, when he had all that hate and sorrow clouding his heart, but it also reflected what he seemed to be like now; lingering in the shadows to protect those who dwell in the light. This new staff would protect Loki and others with its dark beauty and would destroy any foe that it should come across.

"This staff, Loki is called Fróðleikr. Like Mjolnir, it was forged in the heart of a dying star and it's only equal in power, is Mjolnir. You are the greatest Sorcerer in the nine realms, Loki, I know you will use this staff to its full potential." Odin nodded to the guard, who walked up to the God of Mischief and held the staff out to him. Loki took Fróðleikr and held it delicately in both of his hands, while looking at it with disbelieving eyes. To Loki, this felt like a dream and any second now he would wake up from it. Deep down, however, he knew that what was happening was completely real.

The guard also handed Loki a belt, which he took with his right hand, holding Fróðleikr in the other. The belt had six throwing knifes sheathed on it; his old set of throwing knives that had been crafted for him by the Dwarves of Nidavellir. They truly were a beautiful and deadly set, especially when the God of Mischief channelled his magic through them. "I also return to you your throwing knifes, since I am aware that they are a formidable companion to you in battle. There is also one other thing," Odin said.

Loki's head shot up; he seemed to have come out of his small state of shock and was ready to listen to the Allfather.

"You are our son, Loki, and Thor's brother. Whereas we may not be bound by blood, our relationship as a family runs much deeper than blood. Therefore, it is only right that I should restore you to your rightful title," said Odin.

There were a few murmurs among the citizens of Asgard, but once again, they were silenced by the sound of Gungnir tapping on the golden floor. "As of this day, I, Odin Allfather, restore you to your title of Prince Loki Odinson, second son of myself, Odin Allfather and Queen Frigga and younger brother to Prince Thor Odinson."

The hall was silent for a few moments, until a single person could be heard clapping; that person, was none other than Volstagg the Voluminous. Every person present in the hall looked over at him. He got a little embarrassed and stopped clapping, only to discover that after he stopped, everyone else in the hall started clapping and cheering; even the guards joined in. It seemed that Loki was once again welcome in Asgard, but if he wanted the people's respect, he would have to earn it first.

Frigga descended the golden staircase quickly and elegantly. She went and hugged her Loki gently, who returned it instantly. After the Queen of Asgard had finished muttering apologies to Loki and telling him how glad she was about Odin's decision, the God of Mischief was then caught up in Thor's vice-like grip (which had been nicknamed by everyone who knew Thor personally 'the hug of death.) This only got worse when The Warriors Three joined in. Eventually, Fandral, Hogun and Volstagg stopped suffocating the younger God (although, he was still being suffocated by Thor.)

The two brothers pulled out of the brotherly hug and smiled at the people of Asgard, who were still cheering for the fact that they once again has two princes. A few moments later, Loki felt the temperature in the room rise by an astronomical amount. He turned around, glanced behind himself and noticed a Fire Demon at the other end of the extremely large throne room, pulling back the string of a bow that had a flaming arrow attached to the bowstring. The arrow seemed to be aimed at Thor. Loki's eyes widened at this and he pushed past his brother just as the arrow was fired; he knew all too well that the long bows of Muspelheim fired arrows very quickly, due to their sheer size, but they took a while to load another arrow onto.

Loki stuck his hand out and stopped the arrow with his magic, just before it struck his palm. Everyone in the hall gasped and looked over at the Fire Demons. The guards instantly took up a defensive stance, ready to protect the people of Asgard and their king. The Warriors Tree and the Lady Sif had been forced to leave their weapons on a table outside the throne room. Reluctantly, they ran out of a door located at the very back and far to the left, of the room to go and get their weapons.

Thor, who also was without Mjolnir, merely summoned the legendary hammer to him and took up a battle stance next to Loki, who then cancelled the magic, he was using to hold the arrow in place and everyone watched as it fell to the ground.

_Clang!_

**(I recommend listening to the Frost Giant battle theme while reading the fight scene watch?v=9974PHElCxA)**

All hell instantly broke loose as around thirty more Fire Demons gathered behind the archer. They were nearly as tall as Frost Giants and stood at around ten feet tall. Their bodies were enveloped in a constant burning flame that would only ever die, when the Fire Demon itself died. They had eyes as black as the night and looking into them for long enough could make most feel like running in fear. The Fire Demons had swords made of a metal that was resilient to their fire, but it also channelled it as well, so their swords were flaming, just as their arrows.

The archer drew a short sword and then it, along with all the other Fire Demons charged at the Asgardians, getting to them very quickly due to their sheer size.

Thor, being the mighty warrior he was, charged at the closest Fire Demon to him, with Mjolnir raised, ready to do some serious damage. As soon as the God of Thunder was near enough, he struck the flaming enemy on the right side of its jaw with Mjolnir, snapping its neck and killing it. He then took a step forward and hitting another in the chest, causing its ribs to crack and pierce its lungs.

Thor then glanced behind his shoulder quickly to make sure everyone was alright. That's when he noticed Loki channelling his magic into one of his knives, before throwing it into the heart of one of the Fire Demons and summoning it back on to his belt. In any other circumstance, Thor would have smiled with pride at his brother; he noted that his already deadly accuracy with throwing knives had improved a lot in the time that they had spent apart. Unfortunately, the God of Thunder couldn't dwell on this thought for too long since he was on a battle field, so instead he went back to making sure that the Fire Demons didn't get close to any of the Asgardians.

Loki, who was now completely focused on the battle, looked around the throne room, assessing what form of attack would be best for him; his illusions were more or less not an option, the enemy had already seen him and his illusions wouldn't be able to lead any Fire Demons to their death like he had done with the Frost Giants. Leaning back so he would avoid decapitation from the flaming blade of a Fire Demon (which Loki noted was, very, very hot) and then throwing one of his knifes a very short distance in front of him to kill the flaming being, the God of Mischief also decided that using his throwing knifes wouldn't be the best form of attack either, since he was virtually next to his enemies. So that left Loki with one option; his new staff, Fróðleikr. He was not used to close combat with so many enemies around; he preferred one on one, but with the circumstance presented to him, that was clearly not an option. So, he decided to give his new staff a try and stabbed a Fire Demon in the chest with it. The blades at the end of it were far sharper than the one on the sceptre the Chitauri had given him. Smiling at the power of his new staff, Loki fired a blast of magical energy at another one of his fiery enemies, failing to notice how hot the room was now getting for him.

The Warriors Three and the Lady Sif charged back into the room, fully armed and ready for battle. They joined Thor and Loki at the head of the fight and started killing off the Fire Demons themselves, while a few of the guards were shielding themselves and the other Asgardians from some of the arrows that were coming down on them, the rest of them aided Asgard's finest warriors in fending off the attack.

Sif sliced one of the Fire Demons across the stomach with her double bladed staff, before whipping round to stab one in the gut. She quickly surveyed the situation; Volstagg was currently fighting two of the fiery enemies, but was fairing perfectly well against them. Hogun had just taken down a Fire Demon with his mace and was preparing to take down another. Fandral was showing off as usual, but thankfully, not in a way that would injure him, and he took down his opponent with ease. Thor, as usual, was beating his enemies into submission with Mjolnir, which was now being spun by the God of Thunder. The guard seemed to be fairing fine, although they were more focused on defence rather than offence. That just left Loki, who seemed to be very out of breath and his forehead was covered in sweat. Sif frowned at this; she knew Loki was way more of a sorcerer than he was a warrior, but he had never tired this quickly before, even when he was fighting multiple enemies at close range. Then Sif realised that the temperature in the room must be almost unbearable for Loki, because he was a Frost Giant and since she found the temperature very hot, she figured the heat may be physically hurting the God of Mischief.

Loki staggered backwards after blocking an attack from a Fire Demon; he knew that he didn't have Thor's strength, but he should have been able to take that blow a lot better than he did. He blocked another blow, but was knocked to the floor in the process. He tried to get up, but the Fire demon just knocked him down again. It brought its sword up to strike Loki through the heart, but that action was stopped by Sif, who struck the fiery enemy though the gut with her staff. She made sure that it was dead, before offering her hand out to Loki, who took it and was pulled up by the Goddess of War, panting a little. "Thanks," he said.

"You're welcome," Sif replied. She watched Loki pant a little, before going to pick up his staff, "You can't take the heat, can you?" she asked with genuine concern.

Loki walked a few steps past her, before taking one of his throwing knives from his belt, enchanting it and throwing it at one of the few remaining Fire Demons, and summoning it back so it was sheathed on his belt, "Whatever gave you that idea?"

"You are tiring quicker than you usually do, even by your standards," Sif explained.

Loki laughed a little, "You never have tired of criticizing my techniques in battle have you, Lady Sif?"

Sif impaled a Fire Demon with her double bladed staff, "I merely state what is true."

Loki scoffed, _"Really?"_

"Yes," said Sif.

The God of Mischief sighed and watched Thor dispatch of the last three Fire Demons by throwing Mjolnir at them.

Odin stood up from his place on the throne; he had not anticipated this attack, but he didn't join in with the battle either, since he knew that it would be easily taken care of. He also wanted to see if Loki had improved his fighting skills and his magic, which he had and Odin knew that his choice to release Loki and give him Fróðleikr was a good decision. He could see that the hate had gone from his son's heart, but he knew this since his outburst earlier, in which he pleaded for death. Odin had seen right through that lie like it was a window and seeing Loki fight like this had just confirmed his loss of hate.

There was one thing that concerned the Allfather though and that was the God of Mischief's weakness to the heat that had consumed the room. He knew that it would become troublesome for the young God if it happened again. He also worried that the people would find out about Loki's heritage; only the royal family and those closest to them knew that he was a Frost Giant, but his weakness in battle could be covered up by telling the people that it was Loki's imprisonment that weakened him, but that would only happen if the people questioned it.

"Guards, I would like you, The Warriors Three and the Lady Sif to escort the people out of the throne room and protect them from any potential threats," upon Odin's command, the mentioned people began carrying out their orders. "Thor, Loki, you two will accompany me to the Bifrost Bridge," the two brothers nodded and walked out of the throne room with the Allfather. The king and the two princes then made their way to the end of the newly reconstructed Bifrost.

* * *

"Heimdall, do you know of how the Fire Demons entered Asgard? Surely they could not evade your eyes?" Odin asked, as he walked up to the all-seeing gatekeeper.

"I'm afraid I do not, my lord. They must have shrouded themselves from my gaze with some form of spell, like the one that Prince Loki has used in that past," said Heimdall.

Odin and Thor looked at Loki, before Thor spoke up, "But how did the Fire Demons enter Asgard? Surely not even their finest sorcerer has enough power to transport one of them to Asgard, let alone thirty of them."

"There are other ways to travel the nine realms," said Loki, receiving a few questioning looks, "In a certain part of each realm, save for Asgard there is a weak spot, which makes transportation through the realms with the aid of magic a lot easier. Midgard, being the middle realm, has the most of these spots."

Thor and Odin seemed to understand, while Heimdall remained neutral. The God of Thunder suddenly thought of something; the Fire Demons of Muspelheim are not ones who normally send a weak force to a realm, hoping to do damage. The only reason they would attack Asgard like this, is to distract Heimdall and the Asgardians from an attack on another realm; a realm like Midgard. "Is Midgard under attack from the Fire Demons, Heimdall?"

The gatekeeper paused for a second and then answered, "Yes."

"Then we must go to Midgard!" Thor said, stepping into the Bifrost, ready to be sent to Earth "Come, Loki."

The God of Mischief looked at his brother with a confused look, "Brother, in case you have forgotten, I tried to rule Midgard a year ago, I'm not sure they'll take me being back so kindly."

"They will see that you are redeeming yourself, Loki. I'm sure they will hold nothing against you for that," Thor said, trying to persuade Loki to come with him and evidently pleased with the fact that the Mischief God had addressed him as 'brother'.

The younger God thought for a second, before replying, "You want me to travel to Midgard with you, to save the mortals?" Loki asked. Thor nodded, "Very well… it should be a bit of fun at least."

Loki stepped forward and stood beside Thor. The two brothers then waited for Heimdall to activate the Bifrost.

Heimdall placed his sword inside the control unit for the Bifrost. As it activated, Odin spoke up to his sons, "Stay safe, both of you." The king said. "And Loki," the mentioned son looked over his shoulder at his 'father', "Do not cause too much mischief." The Allfather mused.

Loki smiled a genuine smile, and replied just before the Bifrost sent him and Thor to earth, "No promises… father."

And with that, the two Odinsons were whisked away by the Bifrost.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well, this has been going for a long while on Fanfiction, but is now available here! This is still the same author, I did not rip this story off of FF. The first chapter now that I look at it looks terrible in comparison to the others. Please give it a chance! Once you reach say, chapter three onwards I think it gets better...?
> 
> Anyway, this is my first time here, so I have no idea how everything works yet. Be patient with me people, I can have problems with computers.
> 
> Thank you for reading!


	2. Some Assembly Required

Avengers Assemble: Loki's Redemption

Chapter 2: Some Assembly Required

Thor and Loki felt the power of the Bifrost pull them in to the gateway to Earth. They both jerked forward before being pulled into the rainbow portal and sent shooting towards the south west corner of the United States. A dark, tornado-like blast, hit the dusty and barren desert plains of New Mexico, causing a very large dust cloud to surround the landing site. Rainbow colours flashed vividly, looking like they were inside the tornado, standing out even though it was very light out.

Once the dust cloud cleared, the two Odinsons were faced with the great desert plains of New Mexico. The sun stood high in the pale blue sky; its intense heat pounded down on all those unfortunate enough to be outside. Glancing around, Loki could see nothing but a flat plain of land, which was decorated with a few cacti and some very tall mountains, somewhere off in the far distance. The heat that was radiating from the sun was bothering him slightly, but it wasn't anything he wasn't used to; he'd had to bare hotter weather on Asgard and he could do so on Earth.

The two Gods were now faced with the task of traversing fifty miles of the desert, just to get to the nearest town, which of course was where Jane Foster lived. Thankfully, Thor had a plan that would make sure they wouldn't have to walk the distance; that plan, was Mjolnir. Unfortunately for Loki, Thor had not told him of this plan.

Meanwhile, the God of Mischief was wondering how they were going to find out which part of Midgard was being attacked. He knew there were many very different regions in this realm and that depending on the region, news could either travel fast or slow. He just hoped that wherever Midgard was being attacked wasn't too far from where the Bifrost landing site was; he didn't feel up for travelling a long way, even more so in this heat. "Thor, how are we even going to find out where the attack is taking place? Surely you know of Midgard's many regions?" Loki asked.

Thor turned to look at his brother, "Do you not remember this place brother? It has been not two years since we were last here, since you sent The Destroyer to attack the town that is situated nearby."

"You do not need to remind me of _that,_ brother," said Loki, with a very slight dark tone in his voice, "But yes, I remember this place now."

"Good. To answer your question, we will go to the town that Jane Foster lives in. Maybe she can point us in the right direction," said Thor.

Loki glanced around again; he saw no form of strange mortal transport to get them to the town and he was _not_ going to walk there, "And how do you suggest we get there, Thor. I for one am not walking fifty miles of the desert to get there."

Thor took a few steps forward and looked out into the distance, as if he could see the town from where he was standing, which even he couldn't do. The only one who could was Heimdall, "We are going to fly there," he said casually.

The God of Mischief looked mortified at this and bad memories resurfaced, "On second thought, I think I'll walk," Loki said, backing away from Thor. He had always hated flying around by Mjolnir and he certainly didn't want to now.

Thor chuckled before turning to look at the younger God, "Scared brother? Come on, there is nothing to fear."

Loki gave the God of Thunder a questioning look, " _Nothing to fear?_ Thor, the last time I _willingly_ allowed you to seize hold of my collar and let my fly with you being the only thing stopping me from falling to the ground, we ended up being chased by a dragon and then you dropped me."

"Loki, you know that was an accident and I did catch you did I not?" Thor asked, although some guilt was detectable in his voice.

"I was nearly consumed by a fire breathing dragon," the God of Mischief argued.

Thor sighed, "Yes, but that was over two hundred years ago; I was wild and reckless then-"

"You are wild and reckless now," Loki pointed out.

"No I'm not," Loki raised an eyebrow, "Not as wild and reckless as I used to be," Thor sighed again; there was no use arguing with his brother over something so petty and besides, they needed to find out what part of Earth was being attacked, "Anyway, we have talked to much, brother. Come, we must find Jane Foster."

"Wait…" Loki paused and looked around, sensing something.

"What is it, brother?" Thor asked. He looked around for any foe that may be near.

Once Loki was sure of whatever he had seemed to be sensing, he answered, "I sense magic. Can you not feel it? I could not a few minutes ago, but I can now, even if it is the smallest trace…" Being more adapted in the art of magic than Thor, Loki had always had a talent for sensing it relatively quickly, even over long distances.

Thor heightened his senses for a few moments and then he felt it; there defiantly was a trace of magic, but it was hundreds of miles away, "Yes, I feel it now, but I cannot pinpoint its location."

"Somewhere straight ahead… I would also guess that the Fire Demons are the cause of it; their power has grown over the years…" Loki drifted off in thought.

"We must go to the source, many lives could be in danger," The God of Thunder began spinning Mjolnir, ready to take off; the air around the two Gods became clouded with dust due to the sheer force and speed that the legendary hammer was spinning at. Thor then walked over to Loki, grabbed hold of the back of his collar and prepared to take off.

The God of Mischief snapped out of his thoughts, "No, Thor!" Loki exclaimed as he was lifted into the air and carried off by the God of Thunder.

* * *

On the rare occasion that Anthony Edward Stark did go to sleep, that meaning that he was sleeping in his bed and not at his computer or workbench half way through a cup of coffee and working on one of his suits, or taking part in private activates in the middle of the night, he hated getting up in the morning. On these occasions, what he happened to hate even more, was having to get up _early._

So when he happened to get a call from Nick Fury, it was answered by Pepper, who told him that Tony was still asleep. Big mistake, because that only made Fury instruct her to, "Get Stark's lazy ass out of bed and tell him to suit up and get over to S.H.I.E.L.D's new base of operations right now," he naturally wasn't very happy.

"Come on, Tony, you have to get up," Pepper said to the 'pretending to be sleeping' form under the mass of covers.

There came a muffled reply, which sounded vaguely like, 'five more minutes.'

Pepper sighed, _why does he have to be so difficult sometimes?_ She asked herself. "Tony if you don't get up right now, I'm not doing your paperwork for you," she threatened.

That certainly got the genius up and out of bed very quickly, because we all know how much Tony Stark hates paperwork, "Alright, I'm up…" he said sleepily, getting out of bed. He dragged himself over to his wardrobe, scratching his head in the process. If you didn't know better, you would have thought that he was suffering from a severe hangover, but no, this was how Tony Stark was when he woke up after a moderately good night's sleep. He pulled on a plain white T-shirt, a pair of socks and a pair of trainers, struggling to do up the laces a bit. He stood up to his full height (which wasn't all that tall) and walked out of his bedroom followed by Pepper.

Reaching the main living space of Stark Tower, Tony stopped and turned to face his assistant/sectary/advisor/girlfriend who mainly considers herself his babysitter, "You wouldn't really have made me do all that paperwork, would you?"

"Do I make idle threats?" Pepper questioned.

Tony opened it mouth but then quickly shut it again. After a moment's thought, he held the index finger of his right hand up and pointed it at Pepper, "Good point." He turned back around and started walking again, "So, what did Fury want? Does he want to assemble the super-secret boy band again or something?"

Pepper followed Tony, "Well something must be happening if he wants you suit up; it did sound like they were having some trouble over the phone so-"

"So they called the most good looking hero around to come to the rescue and typically it was on his day off when they called. Why does that always happen?" Tony asked himself. He turned to face Pepper when he reached the door that lead out to his landing pad, "If anyone calls, tell them I'm not in."

Pepper sighed, "Make sure you're careful out there," there was a small detectable tone of worry in her voice, even though she was trying to mask her concern for the genius.

"Hey, I always am," Tony said backing out of the door and on to the pathway to the landing pad.

"Even though you piggy-backed a nuke into outer space?" Pepper jokingly called after him.

"That was a one off," Tony replied. He stepped onto the landing pad and watched his armour build itself around his body, hearing it click together. Once the process was complete, he gave a quick two fingered salute to Pepper and then took off and headed towards the new S.H.I.E.L.D base, which was in the same location as the previous one… they had just rebuilt everything on top of it.

* * *

"Does anyone know what the hell these things are and where they are coming from?" Nick Fury yelled at the S.H.I.E.L.D Agents while shooting a Fire Demon along with most of them. He was currently using a stack of crates as cover from the onslaught of flaming arrows that were being fired at S.H.I.E.L.D personnel with unrelenting force and the great sword strikes that the seemingly limitless force of Fire Demons were unleashing in an attempt to destroy any life they could. So far, the had been no casualties, but there were several injured and the Director new that it was only a matter of time before his Agents started to tire and get themselves killed.

Up on a platform pathway about ten meters above him and to the left, Director Fury could see Agent Clint Barton firing his specialized arrows at the Fire Demons, with insanely precise accuracy. He was receiving a lot of attention in return, but this was mainly dealt with by Agent Natasha Romanoff, who was on the opposite side of the walkway, with both of her guns trained on the fiery entities, since she couldn't take them out with hand to hand because they were literally on fire. Fury reminded himself to check how that was possible later.

Agent Maria Hill ran up and took cover next to Fury, dodging a few arrows in the process by dive rolling out of the way, "Sir, the lookout team stationed in New Mexico have sent a report," Hill stood up slightly and leaned on the crates, using the support to fire a few deadly shots at the flaming enemies.

Fury leaned out to the side of the crates, shooting two of the Fire Demons in the head, while asking, "Well then what the hell is the report?"

Reloading her gun and then getting ready to fire again, Agent Hill answered, "The Bifrost was activated about ten minutes ago, they think they saw Thor flying away from the landing site and heading in this direction. They aren't entirely sure, because he was flying too fast, but they think that he might have company as well. From what they could tell, they think he's heading in this direction."

Clint had picked up on what Hill had told Fury and was now looking slightly confused, "Thor? Why would he be back?" He pulled another arrow from the quiver on his back and notched it onto the bowstring, before quickly pulling it back and bringing his hand to rest just under his jaw, with his thumb resting on the edge of his jawline. He then released the arrow and it hit a Fire Demon in the back of the neck and it turned to ash once it had died. He pulled out another arrow and repeated the same process, this time rolling to the side before releasing the arrow, as he had to avoid a flaming arrow that was considerably longer and thicker than his own.

Meanwhile, Natasha used her high vantage point to her advantage and shot all of the Fire Demons that were trying to attack two Agents that were just below her in the head, before reloading and dodging a few flaming arrows that were sent her way in retaliation and killing the offending enemies. Unlike her partner in what could be considered crime, Natasha kept entirely focused on what she was doing until she received orders to do otherwise.

"That doesn't matter for now, Agent Barton. What matters is getting rid of these aliens," The Director instructed. He looked over at another stack of crates and saw none other than Agent Phil Coulson taking cover while he reloaded his gun. In truth, the S.H.I.E.L.D Agent had died shortly after Loki stabbed him with his sceptre a year ago, but he had only been dead for a total of two minutes before the medical team had managed to revive him. He had then spent the next month out cold in a coma, before he woke up and learnt everything that had happened. Two months after that, Fury deemed him fit to come back into action and the Agent hadn't stopped working since. "Coulson!" the Director called. The Agent looked over, "I want you to call Captain Rogers; tell him to get over here ASAP."

"I'm on it, Sir," The Agent replied. He quickly retreated to a safer distance and dialled Steve's home number.

"Agent Redgrave and Agent Yates, I want you two to find a way outside, get in a pickup truck and go and get Captain Steve Rogers from his apartment. Take the back exit and be careful," Fury ordered.

"Yes Sir," the two Agents responded before making their way to the back door as quickly as they could without being seen. If they were spotted at all, then the S.H.I.E.L.D base could be destroyed again because the Fire Giants came after them. They hurried outside into the car park, where even more mayhem was taking place and got into the nearest pickup truck and began to drive to Steve's apartment.

Fury watched the two Agents leave, before pulling out his phone to call none other than Tony Stark so he could find out where the hell he was and why he was taking so damn long.

* * *

Captain Steven Rogers, also known as Captain America, had just returned from the local Gym, where he had almost gone through all of the punching bags available, just to get his usual workout. It didn't matter all that much though, because S.H.I.E.L.D owned that Gym and they always made sure that the equipment was replaced regularly, since the super solider had a tendency to accidently break the equipment while using it, which is why he didn't use the machines anymore and just went running instead.

He had just opened the door when he heard his house phone start to ring. Sighing, he dropped his backpack on the floor. Since he had been awake from his icy prison for just over a year now, he was more accustomed to modern technology, such as things like using a phone, a credit card (which he barely used, but it was good to know) and a TV, which again he didn't really use and when he did, he only watched the news.

His apartment was quite large, considering he was the only one living in it. Obviously it had all that basic living needs and a few gadgets and alarms installed by S.H.I.E.L.D, but apart from that it was quite plain and empty. Steve hadn't really thought about decorating the place that much, since he spent most of his time outside of his apartment, either training, riding his bike around to see what had changed and occasionally he visited Tony Stark in his tower, who he had come to have a friendship with, despite their initial disagreements a year ago.

He found that Tony was a lot like his father in more ways than he was sure the genius knew about. He definitely had the player attitude that Howard had; only it was slightly worse. He had his desire to create a better future and leave behind the best legacy possible, much like Howard. But above all, he was not only a genius, but he was considerably smarter than Howard had been, if that was possible. He had voiced these things to Tony and told him what he knew about his father. The genius had waved this off initially, claiming that the man Steve was talking about wasn't his father, but he soon remembered the message that Howard had left for him on the tape Fury had given him and eventually came to accept what the super solider had told him.

He walked into his living room and picked up the phone, "Hello?" he asked.

"Captain Rogers, this is Agent Phil Coulson, we need you to suit up and come in. A pickup truck will be arriving at your location in fifteen minutes, we need you to be ready by then so you can come in as soon as possible," Coulson said, before Steve even had the slightest chance to ask what was going on.

In the background of Coulson's voice, the super solider could here gunshots and inhuman shrieks, "Coulson, what's going on?" he asked in a hurried tone.

On the other end of the line, the S.H.I.E.L.D Agent poked his head out from behind the steel box he using for cover and saw the fight between the Agents and the Fire Demons, "We have a security breach from an unknown hostile; we don't know what species they are, but they are literally on fire, it looks like they emit it in some way. It's pretty hot in here just to warn you. The outside is also filled with them, so you're going to have to fight your way in. You can't touch them either or get that near them without feeling like you're in an oven, so you'll have to take them out from a distance."

"Understood, I'll be there as soon as I can," Steve put the phone down and quickly went to suit up and get his shield. Fifteen minutes later, he spotted a pickup truck making its way down the street. He quickly went outside and climbed into the back before it had the chance to stop completely and soon he was on his way to the S.H.I.E.L.D base.

* * *

Tony Stark was around three quarters of the way to S.H.I.E.L.D's base of operations while flying in his suit when his AI spoke, " _You have an incoming call from Director Fury, Sir,"_ J.A.R.V.I.S sounded in his robotic sounding English accent. An image of Fury came up to the left side of the display inside of the Mark VIII suit, along with his name.

Tony put on a confused look, "Fury? What does he want? I'm already on my way there. Jarvis tell him I'm not in… wait, scratch that, I thought I told Pepper to tell anyone who called that I wasn't in?" was the genius's reply. He really didn't want to talk to Fury and get an earful of his… well, fury because he wasn't there yet.

 _"I'm afraid that Miss Potts already has informed him of that sir. Director Fury must have made the assumption that if you were not in the tower, then you must be out and on your way there."_ the AI explained.

Sighing, Tony then said, "Jarvis, make a note to keep an eye on Fury; that man is too smart for his own good. Also, put him on the line."

_"Very well, Sir."_

After a couple of seconds, Tony was greeted by the tone of Fury's voice and he sounded stressed and angry, "Stark, are you there or are you still too lazy to drag your ass over here?"

"I'm nearly there; Pepper only managed to get me out of bed ten minutes ago since you called on the one day I actually wanted some sleep. Keep your… actually no that joke won't work because you don't _have_ any hair," Tony replied.

A long and frustrated sigh came from Fury's end of the line, "Stark, quit with the jokes, this is serious. We are under attack from some kind of alien force here; they have swarmed the entire base-"

"Yeah, yeah, let me cut you off right there; I'm here. I can see what's going on and whoa, are those things really on fire?" Tony asked himself, "How is that possible, I mean I know they're aliens-" Tony began circling the air space above the battle. He saw a lot of aliens down there, that were clearly visible because they were on fire. He could also make out a few Agents, but mainly the whole place was completely filled with Fire Demons, not that Tony knew what they were, of course.

"Stark-" Fury's first attempt at getting the genius to stop rambling; it didn't work.

Tony continued talking to himself "But surely that should be impossible, even if they have different biology to us-"

"Stark!" This time, the Director managed to get the genius' attention.

"Yes, dear?" Tony answered.

Fury pinched the bridge of his nose, "Stop rambling and start fighting!" He yelled and then hung up.

"Jarvis," Tony started.

_"Yes, Sir?" The AI sounded._

"Remind me to not anger Fury too often or we may have another Hulk running rampage."

_"Will do, Sir."_

Tony landed and started firing blasts from his repulsors at the Fire Demons, turning a fair few to ash, before his suit was struck with a flaming arrow, which to his surprise, left quite a dent in his armour and he felt the heat off of the arrow too. Suddenly, he found himself swarmed by five of the fiery enemies and he could have sword that he felt his armour starting to melt due to the sheer heat. He was distracted for a moment, which left him vulnerable to an attack.

One of the Fire Demons surrounding him raised its flaming sword and was about to bring it down to strike him, when it was knocked out by a feet by a red, white and blue shield that bounced back to its owner after hitting the foe. The Captain caught his prized shield and ran over to join Tony, who had regained focus and blasted the other four Fire Demons to ash.

"You're late, Capsicle," said Tony.

Steve ignored the genius's remark and instead said, "Don't get too close to them, Coulson told me that these things emit fire over the phone," He threw his shield and it ricocheted off of six Fire Demons' heads, knocking them out cold, before returning to him. Once he caught the shield, he could feel that it was burning hot even through his leather gloves.

"Since when did you learn how to use a phone?" Tony joked, while blasting another two Fire Demons to ash.

Steve sighed, "Very funny, Stark."

Tony took off and started blasting from the air, "Yeah, I know right?"

"You just don't know when to quit with the comments, do you?"

"Now why would I do that?"

At the other side of the base, the S.H.I.E.L.D Agents, including, Nick Fury, Maria Hill, Natasha Romanoff, Clint Barton and Phil Coulson (first name Agent) had managed to somehow push the Fire Demon's forces out into the car park, so in theory, they should have more space to move around, but they were still swarmed by the fiery enemies and a lot of the Agents looked ready to pass out.

At the head of the Agents, were Natasha and Clint, who had both managed to pick up extra ammo and arrows and they were now trying to fend off most of the Fire Demons by themselves, with only a small amount of covering fire.

As she shot two Fire Demons in the head, Natasha looked over to the side and saw a Fire Demon getting very close to Barton, who was pulling another arrow out of his quiver. She shot it in the head and the archer looked at her with an eyebrow raised, "That one counts as mine." He said, before going back to shooting them.

"I didn't know we were having a competition," Natasha said.

"We are now," Clint replied with a smirk.

Neither of them wanted to admit that they knew they were being pushed back and that the heat was unbearable, but they both knew it very well. Soon they were nearly beginning to be overrun and the Fire Demons continued to come dangerously close to the pair.

Steve and Tony noticed this however and began to make their way over to the Agents, "Stark, flank them from the left side, I'll take the right," The super solider ordered.

"Got it," Tony replied.

Before either of them even had the chance to get over to the Agents, a clap of Thunder sounded and echoed throughout the area. Everyone looked up and saw a figure wearing a red cape and Asgardian armour land in front of Natasha and Clint and smash his hammer on the ground, creating a ripple effect, not unlike that which could be found when one disturbed still, unmoving water, which rose the ground and caused it to smash into some of the Fire demons, while knocking all of the others away from the Agents by quite a few meters. The lightning that had been summoned at the time that Thor smashed his hammer on the ground, struck well over half of the fiery foes, turning them to ash instantly.

Another figure landed just a second after Thor. He had landed on top of a Fire Demon, but had impaled it with his staff first, so he didn't get scorched. He looked up, smiling a little maniacally and then rose to his full height, wearing a black trench coat with a hint of dark, emerald green. He pulled his staff out of the ground and turned around to smash it into the face of the Fire Demon behind him. At the same time; he took out a throwing knife and finished the Fire Demon with it, before summoning the weapon back to his belt. Loki then fired a few blue energy blasts from his spear, taking a few out and turning them to dust, before Thor joined him by his side and they began fighting the remaining enemies back to back.

Using his mighty hammer, Mjolnir, the God of Thunder smashed a Fire Demon in the chest, before back handing another in the jaw. A sickening crunch that signalled the jaw was broken could be heard before the foe turned to ash right before his eyes and he found another enemy to destroy. "It is a good thing that we got here just in time brother. Any longer and I do not wish to think what may have happened," Thor said, while Throwing Mjolnir at the Fire Demons, killing several of them.

"Indeed, Thor," Loki replied a little out of breath already; the area here was a lot hotter than the throne room had been in Asgard and he already had beads of sweat running down his forehead. He ducked a flaming blade and then side rolled out of the way of another one, before swiping his staff in a semi-circle shape and killing the two Flaming entities with the two blades on the end of the staff. He pulled out a throwing knife and threw it at one of the remaining Fire Demons and then summoning it back to his belt.

The S.H.I.E.L.D Agents, Tony and Steve just stared, dumbfounded at what was going on. They were relieved obviously that Thor had arrived when he had and that the aliens were almost taken care of, but they also couldn't believe the fact that they were seeing the God of Mischief with him. What shocked them more was that he was fighting not only with Thor, but seemingly on their side as well. After all of them had received these initial thoughts, they then remembered that Loki was a criminal that they had defeated last year and he was captured and taken back to Asgard, which just left one though that was shared between all of the spectators; _what the hell is he doing back?_

Once the final few Fire Demons had been taken care of, courtesy of Thor's hammer, Fury snapped out of his initial shock, "All Agents, surround Loki immediately!" he yelled. In all honesty, he hadn't needed to, because the Agents were moving to do it, including Tony and Steve before he had even opened his mouth. They formed a circle around the God of Mischief and the God of Thunder who was still next to his brother, aiming their guns at Loki.

Natasha Romanoff stepped forward along with Clint, both of them keeping their weapons trained on the God. Fury stepped over to join them, "Loki, put the staff down," he said sternly.

Thor made to protest, but Loki held up a hand before he could. He raised his left hand in a surrendering manor and put his staff, Fróðleikr on the ground gently, before raising both hands in surrender.

"And the throwing knives too," Clint ordered. He had an arrow ready to fly straight in to the God's eye socket if he tried anything.

Slowly, Loki removed the belt of throwing knifes and placed it on the ground, then raised his hands again. His face was completely neutral, but inside he was laughing at how cautious the mortals were being. He didn't really blame them; he had tried to take their realm for own after all, but hadn't he just saved them along with Thor from the threat of the Fire Demons? Surely that would make them slightly less nervous… or would it? For all they knew, he could suddenly turn on them, even though he wasn't going to, but they didn't know that and he was the God of Mischief and called the Trickster for a reason.

"Agents Hill, Coulson, Barton and Romanoff stay here, the rest of you get the Quinjets ready; we're leaving for the Helicarrier in ten minutes," Fury ordered, "There will be no excuse for being late."

The Agents immediately scrambled away, getting supplies and whatnot, preparing to depart. The mentioned Agents, however, kept their weapons trained on the God of Mischief, while glaring at him and if looks could kill, well, let's just say the Trickster may not be around if that could happen. Thor stood by, very unsure of what to do.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well, here is the second chapter. Six of them are already done, so updates will be daily until all are posted on here and then weekly to correspond with my FF updates.
> 
> Thanks for reading and your support! I've noticed I already have Kudos! Thank you so much!


	3. Keep Your Friends Close, But Your Enemies Closer

Avengers Assemble: Loki's Redemption

Chapter 3: Keep your friends close, but your enemies closer

Odin stood out on the balcony that leads away from the banquet hall, overlooking the Golden city of Asgard; casting his one-eyed gaze over the gleaming great towers and the golden spirals alike. Many of the guard were still cleaning up the mess that had been made in the grand throne room and the citizens were fortunate to not be hurt and they were relieved to the fact that the Fire Demons had only been in the palace and no more of them were lurking in the city. The Allfather's one good eye was distant and unfocused on anything and he was seemingly in very deep thought about something. Something that was most likely related to his sons, still only boys in this eye, but men in looks and at heart. He heard the light, elegant footsteps of someone approaching, but did not turn to see who this person may be, for he already knew.

Frigga walked up to the brooding Odin and stood beside him, taking in the spectacular view of the sun shining down upon the city. The sea was calm, a good sign for the fortune of Thor and Loki in the eyes of Frigga. But she could sense the clouds stirring in the east, bringing a great storm to rival even that of Thor's with them. War, suffering and death was in the air and a victory would require a struggle on either side.

In their many years of living, all of the royal family has never gotten used to the view they had from the palace, since it was so breath taking. Not even Odin and Frigga, who had lived far longer than Thor and Loki, had even grown just a tiny bit used to the view. It was a reminder of how appreciative they all were of their positions in Asgard, even if they sometimes misused them a little. "You told Loki, that he was the greatest sorcerer in the Nine Realms. You have not said such a thing for over a century…" There was a pause as Frigga pondered over her next words carefully before continuing, "Were you trying to give him the love he thought he had almost always been denied?" the Queen asked.

The Allfather sighed; from the moment that he had told Loki such a thing when he was giving the God his new staff, Fróðleikr, Odin had a sneaking suspicion that Frigga would question what he had said later on when they were alone, "Partly, yes, but also because he has long since surpassed myself in the Art of sorcery."

The Queen nodded with understanding; she knew all too well how much Loki's talent and power with magic had grown over the centuries, along with many who could detect magic and those who had seen him use it in battle. The reason was, those who could sense magic would be able to feel that the God of Mischief constantly emitted it in vast amounts that could even rival the Odinforce. Of course, Thor also emits magic and he can sense it, but on a very small scale. So small in fact, that only someone with a powerful sense for magic could detect it. Examples of these people are Odin, Frigga or Loki.

Yet what Frigga could not see, what Odin's hidden motive for sending his youngest son to the Realm of Midgard and it certainly was not because he wanted Loki to redeem himself. No, Odin was being far more deceptive than that. But the one who he was trying to deceive would not fall for it so easily, and he knew this.

Everyone knew that before Loki was found by the Allfather after the great war against the Frost Giants ended that Odin was the greatest sorcerer in the Nine Realms, but that was soon changed when the young God was found. It was soon discovered that Loki could perform magic, although it was very weak, from only a month after he was found, "He surpassed us all in that Art so long ago, but we were blind to see what should have been as clear as day."

"No… you were not blind, Frigga, but I was. I often almost completely disregarded Loki's talents until I walked in on him practicing an Illusion spell… and even then I did not pay as much attention as I should have." Odin turned to face Frigga; a deep frown was etched onto his face, "Loki has the greatest mind that Asgard has ever known, yet in the past three centuries, no one but you and Thor have been able to see that."

The Queen grabbed Odin's hands and held them in her own. A silent plea clung to her eyes; a plea for him not to blame himself as much as he was, for it was not right to do so. She voiced her opinion as soon as she was sure that she had the King's full attention, "You must not blame yourself like this; you did see Loki's greatness, I know you did, but right now, the only thing you can recall is the bad of what happened… and you are starting to change your memories so they seem to present you neglecting Loki. I am sure that is happening to everyone else as well." Frigga's words spoke the absolute truth and Odin knew this very well, but he still found it hard to believe.

"I know…" Odin turned to look over the city once again, his look neutral, "Loki holds so much potential power within him and he does even know it."

* * *

Now aboard the Helicarrier, The Avengers –minus Bruce- were gathered around the large black table on the bridge. The buzzing sounds of various computers and the medium-volume chatter filled the room and made its way into the surrounding corridors as well as the ever alert ears of various Agents and The Avengers, except Tony, because he was only alert when he wanted to be (right now wasn't one of those times.) There was a smell of cleanliness in the atmosphere of the air, similar to that of a hospital, but this was mostly masked by the air conditioning that blew from various places around the area. The blue, almost hologram, screens flickered brightly and were ever changing in what they displayed, due to the sheer speed that the Agents were typing at.

Right now, The Avengers, while gathered around the black table on the bridge, along with Agent Coulson and Nick Fury and they were yet to discuss anything of the predicament they were in. Steve, Tony, Natasha and Clint were all sitting in that large, comfy leather chairs, while Thor and Coulson stood, the former pondering greatly over the situation. Fury was standing at the head of the table with his hands clasped behind his back. He decided that he'd had enough of the silence and made the decision to break it by glancing at Thor, directing the question that everyone had held in their minds at him, "So do you want to tell me why Loki is back on Earth? Because from the stunt you two pulled back there, I'm guessing he's not an escaped prisoner, so why is he back?"

Speaking of the God of Mischief, he had been placed in one of the holding cells on board the Helicarrier, with ten Agents in there with him, all pointing machine guns at his head. Since they didn't have a more 'secure' place to hold him, the Agents were under order to –and this is quoted directly from Fury himself- "Empty a clip in his ass if he tries anything."

Loki had been escorted on to a separate Quinjet from Thor and everyone else by the same load of Agents. His staff and throwing knifes were taken aboard the Quinjet that had the present Avengers stationed inside it. Not a word had been said for the duration of the journey, except from the odd order that was given. Once they had landed, the younger God had immediately been escorted to a cell and had been there for around half an hour. Everyone else, meanwhile, had gone to the bridge.

They had also taken Loki's staff and throwing knives with them, which were currently laid out on the black table. Everyone except Thor kept giving the staff cautious glances, because they all remember what happened the last time he had a weapon and it was brought on board.

Thor glanced up at the Director; he had been looking at the table and knew he had caused some sort of worry among the mortals. This saddened him a little because he didn't take pleasure in putting people on edge, unless they were his enemies of course, then he would do so immediately, "Myself and Loki came to aid you in the attack," Thor explained.

"He came of his own free will?" Fury questioned.

"Yes, he came to help you because he wished to," Thor confirmed.

Tony then decided to interrupt, "Wait, so you're saying that tall, dark and evil came here to help us because he _wanted_?" The Genius asked disbelievingly, "I find that _very_ hard to believe. Also, I thought you'd locked him up in fantasy land or something like that, so care to tell why he's out and about?"

It was then Steve decided to contribute something to the conversation, "Tony's right, Thor. It doesn't seem right for Loki to want to actually help up us."

The Thunderer was quite for a few moments, before he sighed heavily and spoke, "Loki was released earlier this day by my father. He has been forgiven for his actions in Asgard and has served his sentence."

Fury narrowed his eye and looked straight at Thor, "What was his punishment?" He asked in an interrogating tone.

"He was imprisoned under the palace for a year, stripped of his magic," Thor answered, knowing that the mortals would disapprove of the punishment. He had a feeling that they would think imprisonment too lenient a punishment and he was in fact right.

"That's hardly a fitting punishment for what he did," Natasha said, looking up at the God and meeting his gaze.

A new voice echoed throughout the room as a new person joined the discussion, "On the contrary, Miss Romanoff, it was more than a fitting punishment," the Trickster himself contributed as he strolled into full view of everyone. He instantly caused uproar. Every S.H.I.E.L.D Agent present on the bridge that had a gun reached for it and aimed at the God of Mischief. Loki was unfazed by the actions of the mortals and just continued to pace forward, "A year's imprisonment had given me time to contemplate my 'actions' as it were." The Silver Tongue was beginning to come out into the discussion already, not that the others new this of course. This time however, he would be using his way with words to articulate himself, rather than to reform the words of others. He turned to catch the gaze of his brother and spoke to him first, "Thor, the term 'stripped' is an ill-fitting description of the apparent absence of my magic over the last year."

"Then what would you call it?" Fury questioned. He was the only one who hadn't reached for his gun upon Loki's appearance and seemed to be quite calm about the situation.

Loki turned his head to the director and smiled suddenly only to have the grin disappear as quickly as it had appeared a few second later, "I would describe my magic as sealed, Fury." The Trickster continued to stalk forward, walking past Agent Coulson as he went, "You see my magic cannot be just taken from me like one would a weapon, because it is a part of my very being. If it were so removed; ripped from my body with extreme force, then all that I am would be taken along with it and I would die a slow and painful death."

"It's a wonder why that didn't happen," Clint said, glaring at the God.

"Indeed it is," Loki mused. He himself suspected something about Odin suddenly releasing him. He had been since it had happened, but the Trickster hadn't thought about it until his arrest by the mortals. That had given him a while to think over the day's events.

He knew that the Allfather was up to something, but he wasn't sure what.

"Getting back to the point," Fury said, trying to make sure that Clint didn't try to stick an arrow in Loki's eye socket _too_ soon at least. He had been told that one by Agent Romanoff and he had to admit that it did amuse him slightly to hear it, but right now it was the last thing that anyone wanted to happen… unfortunately. "You seem to disagree with us. After what you did to this world and its people, some may say that your punishment of merely being imprisoned for a year may not be so fitting."

Loki had reached the director by now by taking his slow, over-confident footsteps. He smiled and spoke while walking behind the man, "On its own it may not sound like the most… _fitting_ of punishments… but there are other factors that have to be considered."

"Like what? Did you have the glow stick you had last time confiscated?" Tony said in a sarcastic, false sympathetic tone.

The God of Mischief glanced at him, now nearing Steve as he paced, "You really ought to either remain silent or use remarks that pose some form of amusement or intelligence because at the moment I'm afraid, you are failing to amuse anyone with your comments and they certainly have no true degree of the intelligence that you supposedly have," Loki took great pleasure in saying that to Stark. Out of all the mortals, he may be the most intellectual and possibly the only one he could have an intelligent conversation with, but sometimes the man was very annoying and he could tell even though he had only encountered the genius once. Plus he was doing it to tease him for his own entertainment.

Tony seemed relatively unfazed by this comment on his sense of humour and instead countered with his own remark, "Ouch that burned my pride slightly…" He muttered, before saying, "But let's think about something here; if your comparing my sense of humour to yours… then mine is better any day. And by the way, I have _more_ intellect than what you have heard about and a hell of a lot more than you have and will ever have."

Loki opened his mouth to counter, but he was cut off by Fury, "Could we get back to the subject at hand please? You two have barely been talking for two minutes and you're already starting up some banter, which quite frankly I find a little odd since only last year you were fighting one another."

Now that shut them up.

The director sighed; this was going to take a while. "Loki, explain why after what you did, one year's imprisonment seems to be enough."

The God of Mischief stopped and turned to address Fury properly, "Very well," He said, "While locked in the deepest cell of Asgard's deepest dungeon, I had some time to think about what I had done. For the first month, I felt nothing but rage at being beaten in a battle I should have won. I did not speak to anyone, no matter how much they tried to make me talk," Loki met Thor's eyes before continuing, "Yet after that, the rage died down, until eventually I felt slight remorse for my actions."

"Is that it? I was expecting something more to happen to you if it supposedly 'reformed' your personality or the way you view things," Fury said, looking at him closely, trying to pick up any hint of a lie on the Trickster's face.

"And right you are," Loki said, looking at Fury with a slight smile on his face, which soon vanished before he started speaking again, "My magic cannot be taken from me like a weapon; it has to be sealed… yet even when it is sealed, a part of my being is missing from me… a whole half of what keeps me alive. For although it was only sealed, and therefore it would keep me in the realm of the living, I cannot tap into it-"

"Stop speaking in riddles, Loki and get to the point," Steve said. They were getting nowhere like this; it was time to wrap this conversation up and move on to the next one. And the Captain was pretty sure that no one was able to understand if Loki was telling the truth or not. he doubted even the God of Thunder, the Trickster's own adopted brother, could tell the difference. But he most likely knew Loki's punishment already and could tell them if he spoke the truth if the need came to be.

The God of Mischief sighed; it was clearly time to reveal the true gravity of his punishment to the mortals. "Do you know what it feels like to be only half alive? To not be whole?" Loki asked in a sinister voice, "Do you know what it feels like to be half dead? Most likely you all do. Now, take that feeling. That thought. That experience and think about how it would feel to be like that for an entire year; to be neither living nor dead. To have the constant feeling of death, but also life at the same time. Take the thought of having to dwell within the balance of life and death for a year. To have to live with death. Then you will know what my true punishment was and you all have the nerve to think it lenient."

The gleaming emerald of Loki's eyes met Thor's for a second, before the Thunderer turned away in shame, not wanting to face his brother after he had given light to everyone else about his punishment. He knew it was harsh... more so even and that just made it worse, even beyond comprehension for some.

There was silence for around half a minute while everyone thought over what Loki had just said; they had all danced with death on at least one occasion and had been almost tempted to give in to her embrace, but obviously, none of them had done it. The agents of S.H.I.E.L.D and the Avengers all shared one thought in that moment; all of them, even Clint, came to the conclusion that Loki's punishment had obviously not been as lenient as they had first thought.

Fury spoke up after a bit, wanting to break the tension in the air, "Everyone except Loki and Thor go and grab a coffee or something; we'll resume this meeting in ten minutes."

The others seemed reluctant to leave the Director in the company of Loki, but upon receiving the one-eyed glare of death, they contemplated the fact that Thor would be staying, so in theory, he should be fine. They slowly got up from the table and walked out of the room, keeping an eye on the Trickster as they went. Only Agent Coulson and Agent Hill were allowed to remain on the bridge, along with the other Agents, but their job was to keep the Helicarrier in the air and nothing else.

Fury turned to Loki and asked him a couple of questions that he had been meaning to ask for a while, "Now forgive me if I seem a little cautious, but I want to know a couple of things. The first one, is why are you here and if it's not too troubling, I'd like a straight answer. Another thing is we put you in a cell with ten of our finest Agents all pointing machine guns at your head. I'd like to know how you got past them and what has happened to them if you don't mind."

"Why am I here?" Loki said, seeming to ask himself the question. He clasped his hands behind his back and started to pace again, casting a small glance towards his staff and knives, making sure that they had not been damaged. Even though they could not be; when the dwarves made weapons, they made weapons to last for eternity, or at least until the day of Ragnarok. He then went back to contemplating the questions he had been asked, thinking of the right words to answer with, but using a pause for dramatic effect. His words came to his silvertongue naturally, requiring no effort after centuries of refined practice, before flowing off in a perfect script. He could bury a person in riddles while speaking to confuse them, embedding the truth among his lies in such a way that they were believable to any person and this was one of Loki's greatest of gifts. Yet some would also call it a curse. Perhaps even the famed Trickster himself.

Loki's expression would look neutral to most, but to the ones that knew him better than anyone, it was evident that he was considering the fact that he had returned to the very world he had tried to rule and he himself, did not know why. "That is a good question… one to which I do not even know the answer to at this present time. As for your Agents, do not fret. They are merely guarding one of my illusions right now; none of them are harmed in anyway. In fact, they should be discovering it right about now."

As if on que, an Agent came charging through the door looking slightly on edge, "Director Fury, Loki has-" he then caught sight of the God of Mischief. "Escaped..." He finished, unsure of what to make of the situation. He was sure that Fury was extremely aware that a war criminal who just also happened to be the God of Mischief, Magic and Lies was standing just a few metres away from him, seeming to be helping in some way, yet the whole thing appeared surreal and the Agent found the entire prospect bizarre.

"It's fine," Fury began, "He has permission to be here. You can take your unit and have a break until I need you again."

"Yes sir," The Agent replied with a small nod of his head. Giving Loki a wry glance he stepped backwards and turned, before heading out of the door.

As soon as the door slid shut, Loki focused his gaze on the director, who was looking straight at him. Fury then looked at Thor before asking, "Do you two know what those things were back there?" He questioned, looking between the two Gods.

Loki began to pace around the table again, before stopping when he was shoulder to shoulder with his brother, a wearing seemingly serious expression, although his eyes glittered with excitement. Yet this was oblivious to everyone that would have looked at him. Oh the thrill of impending war. Even when unwanted it now brought a shiver of excitement down Loki's spine. The lies he could tell for the benefit of Midgard, all without being reprimanded for it. Priceless. This opportunity was sheer priceless and he would not waste it. He would savour it while it lasted, for it was an event that does not happen often. Not often at all.

"They are the Fire Demons of the Realm Muspelheim. A place of darkness and fire, ruled brutally by one of the most fearsome of foes in the Nine Realms." Loki said, keeping his calm under the ecstasy he was getting from the feeling of war.

"Who?" Fury questioned, eager to know this new enemy of Earth's.

"His name is Surtur and I believe I know why he declares war upon your Realm," Loki explained, a hint of pride flashing across his features.

And the rest was silence.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chapter 3, things get a little better from here on, so please carry on giving me a massive chance!
> 
> Thanks for reading and giving support! I really am thankful for it!


	4. Explanations And Rising Tensions

Avengers Assemble: Loki's Redemption

Chapter 4: Explanations And Rising Tensions

Silence. At this moment in time it clung to the air like a small child to their mother; wishing not to let go and endlessly increasing their grip. Yet silence was an oddity unique to itself; it could be dispelled by ones voice just as easily as it could be instigated. And as the silent air hung on the bridge, everyone looked upon none other than the God of Mischief in surprise to the last thing he had said. Even Thor had raised an inquisitive blonde eyebrow towards his brother, looking on at him with interest as he tried to comprehend why Loki knew such a fact of knowledge. Something that even he was not aware of; the Thunder God knew very well that there were many things they did not know, but such knowledge would have been passed onto him by his father had Odin known. Could that be the answer then? That not even the great Allfather knew what Loki did? Just how much did the mischief maker find out in the year they spent apart and how much would that affect them all? Thor was most certainly a little wary-though he would not tell you this- to find out.

And in all of this silent chaos, the Trickster just merely stood idly in his position, hands clasped behind his back as he took all of the looks in and internally smiled. Oh how he enjoyed it, the mortal's obliviousness to the workings of their very own world and the goings on of other species that do not inhabit their own planet. A year ago, Loki would have referred to this as pathetic naivety and even now, such a thought still probed the back of his mind, but as he looked upon his thoughts, he came to the conclusion that he now thought of the mortals as a people who although primitive in much concerning technology, were slowly becoming more aware of the universe. And how Loki would love to be their educator in this particular matter… yes, he had certainly been right when he had spoken to Thor at the Bifrost…

_The God of Mischief looked at his brother with a confused look, "Brother, in case you have forgotten, I tried to rule Midgard a year ago, I'm not sure they'll take me being back so kindly."_

_"They will see that you are redeeming yourself, Loki. I'm sure they will hold nothing against you for that," Thor said, trying to persuade Loki to come with him._

_The younger God thought for a second, before replying, "You want me to travel to Midgard with you, to save the mortals?" Loki asked. Thor nodded, "Very well… it should be a bit of fun at least."_

Yes, this was going to be very fun indeed.

"Surtur?" Fury said the name as if he were trying to if he had heard it before and because he was about to question the God of Mischief about such an enemy. But before any of that would happen, he decided to call everyone back in. He turned to Agent Coulson, "Get everyone back in here now; they'll want to hear this."

Coulson soon left for the break room just down the corridor and returned with everyone in around a minute or so. The other Avengers walked in the room with a seemingly alerted air about them, except for Tony, who walked in with a slight swagger and his perfectly straight poker face. Those years of gambling really did pay off after all. They all resumed their seats on the bridge, and some, which meant Tony and Clint, had cups of coffee in their hands, which they soon set on the table.

Of course the two had cups of coffee for different reasons; Stark had a coffee because he was claiming to be tired. Barton on the other hand needed something to keep his thoughts more focused on what people were saying and less focus on his thoughts of sticking an arrow in Loki's eye socket… and wondering how he would do that when his bow was in the break room… dilemma.

Fury looked them over with that menacing one eyed stare of his. Upon evaluating their expressions for a few seconds, he made an assumption, "Looking at your faces I suppose it's not incorrect to assume Stark hacked into the security and you all watched the whole thing happen."

There was a pause that soon ended because of the very man who had hacked the CCTV himself. He held his arms aloft in surrender, "Alright, you got me." He said, before putting his arms down and directing a pointing index finger towards Loki, "So reindeer games, who's this Surtur guy?" He asked, resting his jaw in the palm of his hand and leaning his elbow on the table boredly. He tried to appear so carefree, but deep inside and Loki could see this easily he was just as on edge as everyone else. He was there in the last attack; he was even the one, who stopped it with the nuke arguably, and he knew just what destruction Loki could cause… yet he even thought that the Trickster hadn't shown everything he was capable of in the last attack. Yes, the genius suspected that there was more to this God-both of them even- that met the eye. An eye he would be sparing to keep close watch on the God of Mischief.

Loki looked at Thor and gestured for him to explain, feeling that his part in such a conversation would arrive shortly, but it was not at the present time. Amusement. A look at ghosted the face of the Trickster as he turned to face away from the Avengers with his hands clasped behind his back. He looked upon the others present on the bridge; he knew they kept sparing glances even if they were trying to be discreet or trying to get on with their work. Let them all wonder about Surtur for a while and then bring the reality of the situation crashing upon them. Watch them squirm under such pressures; oh the fun that such things were to him.

Torment. He loved it when he was the instigator.

Glancing at Thor after Loki gestured to him, it was now the turn of the good Captain to speak up, "Thor?" He questioned, wanting an explanation of who Surtur was exactly. Another Asgardian perhaps? No, the Captain doubted that by the slightly grim expression on Thor's face. This was something worse, yet maybe not as powerful as an Asgardian at the true height of their power, this threat was one that even Thor was wary of… they would have to be careful when facing this foe. Yet if this Surtur was not an Asgardian, then he couldn't be a God could he? Surely that worked in their favour in terms of power? Somehow Steve doubted all of this and hoped that things were not as grim as they appeared.

Sighing, the Thunderer looked at the group and crossed his arms, "Surtur is a being who rules the realm of Muspelheim, where the Fire Demons from earlier hail from. He is by far the biggest, strongest and most fearsome of all of them. He and my father are mortal enemies, but Surtur has neither the means nor power to strike down my father or launch a full scale attack on Asgard." Thor explained, gazing upon the looked he received. Most seemed bewildered at such words, but one thing was one everyone's mind; did Surtur have enough power to conquer Earth?

This question was soon voiced by Barton, who while sipping his coffee was keeping a close eye on Loki, "does he have enough power to go to war with us and possibly win?" He was arguably the most on edge out of everyone, having been the one to be subjected to Loki's mind control; he knew more of Loki's trickery than the others, except for Thor of course. He sipped his coffee to try and release the stress of the situation, but it wasn't working too well.

Now that was a question Thor did not want to answer, for surely the truth would severely dampen the spirits of all those around them. He looked down towards the floor and then met the gaze of everyone else, "Surtur has more than enough means to conquer or destroy Midgard if he so willed it." Solemn looks met the Thunder God's eyes as he finished his sentence, yet he added the only glimmer of hope that the mortals had after a few seconds, "However that would only be if we were not a team. Surtur may have great power, in both strength and magic but he is no match for the absolute combined efforts of all of us, especially if Loki were to join us in the fight."

Doubt and mistrust filled the air at Thor's last words; Loki could not be trusted by anyone and Thor was out of his mind if he thought any of them would trust him.

The God of Mischief smiled from his position facing away from everyone; he could feel his role in the conversation coming up… very soon, so very soon, Thor's optimism would be challenged by Loki's knowledge and after everyone knew what he had to say, they would be able to create the most efficient plan to stop Surtur that anyone had ever thought of.

"Wait a second," Coulson interrupted, gaining everyone's attention at the same time, "Loki, you said that you think you know why Surtur is declaring war on us. Care to enlighten us?"

The mentioned God turned to face them all; such ignorance of the universe should not be tolerated, Thor should know at least. But if Odin didn't know, how could he? Oh how Loki loved to be blessed with knowledge; all those years of reading instead of doing extra training while many warriors laughed in his face was beginning to pay off greatly. This time his knowledge would be more valued than ever before… that was of course if they did not assume that he was lying, which he wasn't.

Pacing forward, Loki wore an unreadable expression as he approached the table once more, "Very well. Let us begin with a tale that only Thor will know the beginning of, yet all of you know the end to." He stopped in his tracks, green eyes sparkling as he began his story. He loved this, being able to exercise that silver tongue of his after so long; he should come to Midgard more often since it appeared that things were far more fun when Loki conversed with those who in the masses had less intellect than himself. It made his deception easier and more amusing, but far less satisfying, since it was not so much a challenge opposed to deceiving Odin. Now that was priceless and an act he only ever did for fun…

"Two years ago, I fell from the Bifrost bridge; a bridge in Asgard that connects to all realms," He spared a glance towards Thor as his brother recalled the painful memory, "one could say it was also my fall from grace. I became lost to the void after falling through a tear in space. There I drifted for some time. How long? That is the guess of any man; however I suspect it was little more than a few hours." Loki paused as he took in the intent looks, seeing that everyone was listening. _They try to see if I lie… why do people always assume I am lying?_ _I do not lie_ all _of the time, just when I need to. And I lie not now… but they do not know this. Thor should know surely?_ He glanced at his brother once again, who seemed to be unsure of his words also, _brilliant,_ Loki thought. _At least he is only unsure of the matter. I would rather have that than utter disbelief._

"Even Heimdall could not see you," A voice from his left informed him. Thor crossed his arms, the guarded gesture showing that he was not enjoying the recollection of such events. Such pain; the sorrow and the remorse he had felt, that he still felt… Thor would not wish such a painful burden on any man. There is no greater pain than the mourning of someone that one could never say goodbye to. Yet such joy he had felt when he learned that Loki had lived through such trials. Indescribable joy; only those closest to the trickster, no matter how hard that place by his side is to get, where the ones truly grateful. But these were a mere handful of people; Asgard cared not for the Prince of Lies unless he was publicly forgiven… so maybe on his return to Asgard he would be commended? Thor contemplated these thoughts greatly, for he was hardly the absent minded fool that many were lead to believe he was.

Loki turned to his brother briefly before addressing everyone else, sharing an understanding look. A rare thing between them, "After the certain amount time I spent in the void was up, I came to the other hole in the tear that our fight had caused. I fell through and landed on a barren rock in the middle of space. Exhaustion was my only real injury, at least physically, but mentally I had suffered greatly. My time in the void, with no actual idea how long I spent in there, constantly plunging to my supposed death; it created a deep sense of madness within and briefly scratched the surface of the darker side that we all have. The person you know be as now," He pointedly backed away from the table at this point, the eyes of everyone on the bridge now glued to him, yet some were tiring of this tale.

"Loki, I'm sure this is a very good bedtime story, but could you please get to the point?" Fury more commanded than asked of the Trickster. Boredom had tinted the mood, and the director did not want anyone dosing off on the job when deep within Loki's words there could be unseen lies. There were lies everywhere and this guy was the God that governed over them. If anyone knew how to lie and do it convincingly, it was him.

Smiling, the God looked upon him with amusement before he slowly began to pace, "Do not fret, there is a great point to this tale. As I was saying, once I landed upon the rock, I fell unconscious. However, when I woke again, I noticed that I was inside a prison cell. Confused, I demanded release, but instead, they took me, the Chitauri that I would very soon be the leader of, to their leader."

"Leader? I thought that you were their commander?" Thor questioned, looking at his little brother quizzically.

"No, their leader is a being whose mentality is currently far worse than my own. A mad titan obsessed with death, and has the power to bestow enslavement on almost any mind. That is the Chitauri leader, Thanos." Loki explained, his words dripping with malice and hate. "At the time, he offered me something that I could not refuse; a chance to once again be King of a realm that I would choose. I would have absolute power and a chance to prove myself in battle against Thor once again."

Natasha, who had not spoken in a very long while, interjected this time giving Loki a look that displayed utter disbelief, "It that all you care about? Power and beating your brother?"

"It is the nature of the Asgardians," Thor replied for his brother, knowing that they would get off track once more should Loki answer by himself, "Power may not be our desire, but proving our worthiness, that is something everyone strives for on Asgard. Our father is very demanding and expecting, thus we were in competition to prove ourselves once we had both reached of age. Every child on Asgard goes through something similar, but as sons of the king, one could say that we had it the worst." Thor looked down in regret. In all truth, he felt that perhaps Loki had been the one to have suffered the most under such pressures rather than Thor… but that was not a thing to dwell on now, there were far more pressing matters at hand.

Loki sent a silent thank you to his brother, knowing himself that if had had replied, they would have gotten off track once more. Taking a deep breath and facing everyone, he continued his tale, "I accepted the offer almost immediately, oblivious to what the consequences would be. However during my stay there for a year, I learnt the answer to your question. So here it is."

A smile spread across his lips as his silver tongue prepared itself for delivering the breaking news, "Surtur and Thanos are mortal enemies; once allies they now hate each other after an alliance of theirs was broken by Thanos. How? I am unsure. However the reason that Surtur declares war upon Midgard is to spite both Thanos and myself. He wishes to laugh in the face of his greatest enemy that is not of Asgard because of the alliance he broke and his failure to conquer what is considered the weakest of the nine realms. He also wishes to laugh at me for the same reason and quite possibly Thor because of his love for this world."

Silence. There was silence once more. But Loki was not finished yet… oh no, nowhere near finished.

"You may think his reasons for war are petty, however consider this; Surtur does not wish to conquer this world for his own. No, all he seeks is destruction. He wishes to obliterate this realm and he would do it by his own hands and watch the death of an entire race just to spite his enemy. In the end, you have no chance of negotiation and unless you put up a worthy defence, this world will burn in the fires of Muspelheim." And there it was, the news that brought everyone to think about just what kind of situation they were in.

They faced being obliterated and burned to death and destruction by a being of fire that cares not for who they are and wishes to destroy the human race out of pure spite. Added to this was that the aforementioned villain had an army of Fire Demons at his disposal, and considering the leviathans in the Chitauri attack, he could have many more horrors that fore now he kept secret, to make them live in fear. But as they contemplated such thoughts, they remembered that none other than the war criminal Loki was back on the planet conversing with them in a very civilised manner, when last year he had killed dozens, destroyed much of Manhattan and taken the minds of a fair few. Chaos was circling the Earth indeed and everyone better be prepared for when it struck.

The Avengers shared glances with each other, now knowing the full gravity of their situation; their faces were solemn or expressionless. The Agents on the bridge shared this as well as silence hit the air once more. The good Captain looked towards the God of Mischief with wonder; how could they trust such a man? A liar among liars. A deceiver amongst the deceptive. Loki was everything that they could not trust, yet it would be foolish to ignore his words, surely? Steve had doubts that even the God of Mischief could tell lies in such great detail while having an answer to every question… _I guess this is why he is the God of Lies and Mischief; no one can tell if he's lying or not._ Steve thought, before recalling a certain mishap; a hole, although small in Loki's words. And that is what the Captain used as his next question.

Thor shared a look with Loki in the moment before the question came, confusion gracing his features. Why? Well that would be answered in just a moment in fact.

Speaking up, Captain Rogers directed his question towards both of the Gods, demanding a straight answer, "Earlier Thor, you said that if we are a team then we have the means to prevent this from happening. But what Loki says now contradicts that; now what is the truth? Because I would like to know the real chances we have." The Captain was tired of hearing so many different opinions; he wanted the answer straight and true.

Loki grinned at this; oh how exaggerative he could be sometimes "I spoke about what would transpire if you did not put up a fight." And that was the truth, Loki may lie but he did not do so all the time, just most of the time, "If you and your full team stand against Surtur, I am sure that you will be victorious." He did not lie here; if this team could beat him, a God, then surely they could defeat Surtur. Or was that a miscalculation? No, Loki did not miscalculate often and when he did, he almost always corrected it quickly.

"But then that brings us to the important question; if you are supposedly on our side, will you fight with us," Fury inquired, voicing a question that everyone wanted answered. They all looked at him expectantly, giving the trickster the attention that for so long he had desired so much. This trip to Midgard certainly was paying off; this glorious attention, the way everyone seemed to be relying on the knowledge that the Trickster had… it pleasured his to know that he was getting true recognition, even if everyone did hate him; it fed his darkest desires like oil on a fire as he smiled upon them… although Loki himself would never tell you that he wished his darkest desires would never see the light, or help Yggdrasil many billions would perish.

"If you allow me, I will fight alongside your team in a battle against Surtur… Yes, I will," Loki answered with sincerity, his truthful gaze meeting the eyes of everyone else. _And I would do so with all my strength. Thor loves this realm so, even after what he was like in the past. Perhaps I can find certain attraction to this strange world also?_ The God of Mischief thought to himself as he studied the faces of the ones he spoke to. They considered his offer, he could see it clear as day.

Calling it an end to this particular session, Fury commanded everyone once more, "Alright I think that's enough for now, so go and have a longer break. But Thor, I want you and your brother to stay on the bridge unless I say otherwise." Loki seemed to raise his eyebrow slightly when Fury referred to them as brothers, such a privilege remained only with members of Odin's family as far as the God was concerned, but he let it go for once.

A small amount of muttering was heard as everyone got up and left, casting wary glances at the God of Mischief as they strolled out of view. Except for Loki and Thor, who retreated to one side of the bridge, before they merely stood in silence side by side, something that had not occurred in a long time.

* * *

The minutes passed slowly; much like hours when one was bored, yet after only a brief ten minutes the silence between the two brothers was broken by none other than the God of Thunder himself. He turned to his brother who was gazing upon the now darkening sky, the sun resting on the horizon and the beauty of such a sun set; such peace that was between them that had not been for so long, it pleased Thor too much to express in words, but how unfortunate it was for this moment of peace to happen while an impending war loomed over them. Fate had an odd way of reunion, didn't it?

"Brother," Thor began, causing Loki to look at him with inquiry, "There is one thing that confuses me even after all of your explanations."

Intrigued, Loki replied after turning to look at the last seconds of the sun set; no matter where he was, the setting of the sun was always just as beautiful to marvel that Loki loved to enjoy "Oh, and what would that be?"

"You spoke earlier and said that you did not know why you are here," Thor answered, remembering his brothers words from before as they echoed so vividly in his head;

_"Why am I here?" Loki said, seeming to ask himself the question. He clasped his hands behind his back and started to pace again, casting a small glance towards his staff and knives, making sure that they had not been damaged. Even though they could not be; when the dwarves made weapons, they made weapons to last for eternity, or at least until the day of Ragnarok. He then went back to contemplating the questions he had been asked, thinking of the right words to answer with, but using a pause for dramatic effect. His words came to his silvertongue naturally, requiring no effort after centuries of refined practice, before flowing off in a perfect script. He could bury a person in riddles while speaking to confuse them, embedding the truth among his lies in such a way that they were believable to any person and this was one of Loki's greatest of gifts. Yet some would also call it a curse. Perhaps even the famed Trickster himself._

_Loki's expression would look neutral to most, but to the ones that knew him better than anyone, it was evident that he was considering the fact that he had returned to the very world he had tried to rule and he himself, did not know why. "That is a good question… one to which I do not even know the answer to at this present time."_

"You spoke the truth that time, even I could see it," the God of Thunder added, his face still lightly touched with confusion.

Loki turned to him once more, looking at him straight with eyes that did not lie, nor falter one bit in their gaze, "I spoke the truth, yes. What of it?" He asked, not quite understanding what his brother was attempting to put into words.

"Do you really not know why you chose to follow me here?" the Thunderer asked. His gaze was fixed on his brother's emerald eyes out of habit; Loki could normally lie flawlessly, yet when he wished to drop hints to another he would usually reveal the secret that he was telling some truth in his eyes; they would gain a more mischievous glint, making them appear ever so slightly lighter. This was not possible to spot by mortals, but the Thunder God was well versed in such practices and did it quite often. But if Loki were to lie and give not a single hint of his true intentions, Thor doubted even his father would know of such trickery.

Sighing, Loki looked down for a moment, before tiling his head back so he cast his emerald gaze upon the ceiling, "No, I do not," he met his brother's eyes and continued, "At first I contemplated by being here and came to the conclusion that I followed you here to merely protect the realm you had come to fall in love with so much, after being released from the dungeons of Asgard… yet somehow, I feel now that my supposed 'release' in the first place is lie, or even a test." The God of Mischief turned away from his brother and began pacing away from him, knowing full well that Nick Fury, though however good he was at discretion, was listening to them converse intently.

Thor followed his brother with hurried steps, a concerned look plastered to his features, "Loki, why would you consider such a thing?" He asked with genuine concern. He could see that certainly the Trickster meant his words… at least he was sure anyway. He hated not always knowing the full picture when it came to his brother. He knew he would find out in time, now being a time where Loki would soon tell him, but that was not always the case; more often than not Loki kept things from Thor, sometimes for his own good, other times not. It was a rift in their relationship as brothers that may never close, at least not fully, but there was always hope.

"Our father, Odin, never does anything without reason. In all actual fact, I believe my punishment to be ill fitting, at least in comparison to what others suffer," Yes, he had seen some of Odin's cruellest punishments first hand, and by the norns were they creative. Take one example for instance; a traitor of Asgard who had let in a Dark Elf assassin to kill the princes, who at the time had just come of age, Loki's birthday having been two days previous. When the guards had found and apprehended the man, Odin had ordered his execution, by means of being cast out to the realm of ironically, Muspelheim as a mere mortal, after being tortured for two days with no break in the dungeons for information. Needless to say, after around three days, there were no remains left of the man… not even bones. Heimdall had soon stated that he had been ripped to shreds by Fire Demons and then burned in the undying fiery plains while screaming for mercy. "My crimes are punishable by death after all."

But Loki knew of far crueller punishments that Odin could concoct, he dreaded to think what could have awaited him had Odin not been so lenient.

"So I believe Odin to be testing me; released me on the whim that I may have a small chance at redemption," Loki admitted, turning to face Thor as his brother stopped in his tracks.

Thor sighed at Loki's words; he knew that Odin had his certain ways of dealing with them both, but he was suspicious as to where the God of Mischief was taking this conversation. So in order to find out, he played the fool, knowing that Loki would undoubtedly know this, and asked a rather idiotic question, "You think father lies to you about being forgiven in his eyes and the eyes of the people in Asgard?"

"That I do," the younger God replied simply, "Odin has lied to me in the past, what is to say he does not try to deceive me once more?"

"Loki, I am sure father had his reasons about keeping your heritage from you," Thor tried the reasoning tactic, sensing that Loki still had some resentment to his adoptive father. He understood clearly what Loki was saying; he wasn't weaving sentences that lost people within them so they could not keep up with his speech pattern and thus fail to comprehend what he was conversing of. However he also knew that his brother had one other thing to say, having known him for his entire life, he knew when to expect such secrecy in a conversation.

"Whatever reasons he had he should explain to me on our return to Asgard. I wish to know why I was denied the truth and given every title a liar could ever have…" the sky outside had long since grown dark, the setting sun having faded away to be replaced by the bright and celestial beauty of the moon, slowly rising in the distance. Had it been a few years earlier in the palace of Asgard, Thor and Loki may very well have been conversing while gazing at the moon, but such times were past and this was not the right time nor place now.

Yet Loki disregarded the moon, which bore an ever stark resemblance to his place by Thor's side; two brothers, ever so different like the sun and moon, yet like the inseparable pair that was day and night neither could exist without the other. But instead of paying heed to this, Loki ghosted a look over to Thor, but seemed to look past him as he finished his sentence, staring at a blank space behind him "perhaps, it is because I am the greatest lie in existence? My entire being is a lie, maybe I am a being created of illusion, existing, but not truly existing at that. I am a lie and so are many of my words." He seemed to question himself as much as he did Thor with these words, confusion about his usually indifferent or smiling features.

Thor instantly closed the gap between them, gripping the other's shoulders and shaking him a little roughly, before bringing his hand up to grip the side of Loki's neck; a gesture often shared between close shield brothers, or the closest of brothers at that. Though they were not bound by blood, Thor would never cast Loki aside; they were brothers, no matter what. The Thunder God stared at the Trickster, forcing him to meet his gaze; sapphire met emerald and once Thor knew Loki was focused on him, he spoke, "listen to me brother and listen well; you are no lie, you stand before me in physical form, not some illusion crafted of evil. Though we share no blood or similarities in looks, you are my brother. You always have been and you always will be, no matter what. You used lie only when necessary, I know this now and you are that person once again, not the man from last year that I met who carried naught but poisonous hate in his heart." To prove his point, Thor squeezed Loki's shoulder comfortingly and reassuringly.

"You hide the confusion that you face so well from others, Loki, yet I know you to be puzzled on many matters right now. I know I cannot and most likely will never be able to understand just how that mind of yours works and how many thoughts you have at a certain time, but I do know something for sure; I may not have been blessed with such intellect as you, but I know that I will always be here to try and help you when you are confused." Thor pulled his brother's head closer, so their foreheads here touching; the greatest gesture shared between two brothers, by blood or by battlefield. Loki seemed not to mind such close contact with Thor, despite their rather unstable relationship as brothers, "I may not have seemed the most approachable of people in the past, but now Loki, I am here for you and I always will be."

All the past tension they had shared between them throughout the previous months seemed to dissipate in both of their minds as Loki looked upon Thor, trusting him fully for the first time in a while and believing his words. It felt odd to the God of Mischief; so long had he been absent to such trust in another, yet this made him feel relief. He may very well still have a heart under the ice, at least he thought so now anyway. It made him feel strange… so this was sentiment, a feeling Loki had thought he had forgotten long ago, yet experienced now. It was a pleasant feeling and filled him with hope; he might not be all that lost after all, just misguided, needing to be set back on the right path as it were.

The sincerity in Thor's words and tone, so genuine and real; this is what the Thunder God really thought. While he could not twist words and weave glorious tales like Loki, at least all of his words came from a golden heart and were sincere. Of course Loki was also sincere… sometimes when people could tell anyway, but the legend of his silver tongue often got in the way, causing much disbelief of his words to sprout wherever he went in Asgard.

But perhaps that would change? Maybe upon his return he would be welcomed back by everyone with open arms, accepted, truly by the people. Not scorned for his ways but praised for them because of his cunning?

Maybe there just might be a chance for redemption after all.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chapter 4 of the currently written six/soon to be seven. Hope you enjoyed it! Thanks for reading and your Kudos! Plus any subscriptions, bookmarks and whatnot! It is appreciated!


	5. A Full Team Assembled

Avengers Assemble: Loki's Redemption

Chapter 5: A Full Team Assembled

_Thor instantly closed the gap between them, gripping the other's shoulders and shaking him a little roughly, before bringing his hand up to grip the side of Loki's neck; a gesture often shared between close shield brothers, or the closest of brothers at that. Though they were not bound by blood, Thor would never cast Loki aside; they were brothers, no matter what. The Thunder God stared at the Trickster, forcing him to meet his gaze; sapphire met emerald and once Thor knew Loki was focused on him, he spoke, "listen to me brother and listen well; you are no lie, you stand before me in physical form, not some illusion crafted of evil. Though we share no blood or similarities in looks, you are my brother. You always have been and you always will be, no matter what. You used lie only when necessary, I know this now and you are that person once again, not the man from last year that I met who carried naught but poisonous hate in his heart." To prove his point, Thor squeezed Loki's shoulder comfortingly and reassuringly._

_"You hide the confusion that you face so well from others, Loki, yet I know you to be puzzled on many matters right now. I know I cannot and most likely will never be able to understand just how that mind of yours works and how many thoughts you have at a certain time, but I do know something for sure; I may not have been blessed with such intellect as you, but I know that I will always be here to try and help you when you are confused." Thor pulled his brother's head closer, so their foreheads here touching; the greatest gesture shared between two brothers, by blood or by battlefield. Loki seemed not to mind such close contact with Thor, despite their rather unstable relationship as brothers, "I may not have seemed the most approachable of people in the past, but now Loki, I am here for you and I always will be."_

Having been watching the footage from the bridge, the other Avengers, still without Bruce gracing their presence appeared puzzled in some ways. Or at least all but Tony did. All the genius did do in fact was make one of his ever so famous comments after cutting off the feed, having long since grown bored of the brotherly exchange between Thor and Loki, "wow… I for one certainly didn't see that one coming. Who would have thought that Loki of all… Gods had an emotional side?" He asked the rhetorical question, but expected an answer, "anyone else see that coming? Because I don't know about you, but I find that kinda creepy." He said from his place seat beside Steve, who was standing. The other two Avengers were seated at an angle opposite them, so they could all see the footage.

"Don't be fooled; he's a liar-the God of Mischief and Lies even. There can be no way what just happened is real, he's just acting because he knows we're watching," finally voicing his opinions, Clint narrowed his eyes as he stared around at his teammates, hatred, anger, murderous intent and malice laced both his tone of voice and appeared so prominent in his eyes and the expression he wore; mistrust. He would not be letting this God out of his sight for as long as he could possibly stay awake. Loki was not to be trusted by anyone, not after what he had done. He had lied horrendous lies. Killed an unspeakable number of innocents. Possessed the minds of several and had forced the Archer himself to murder his own friends and fellow Agents in cold blood.

No, he would not be getting Clint's sympathy vote. Not now and not ever. He owed that much to everyone he had been forced to kill and he would sooner face the depths of hell himself rather than be alive to see Loki kill more innocents. _Not another life… he will claim no other life while I still breathe,_ Barton thought as he narrowed his eyes.

"I wouldn't be so sure, Barton," Steve began. Like everyone else, he had been examining Loki's expressions, tone of voice and likely hood of truth in his words. Though he did not know the opinions of his team, he doubted that they would see another side to the God of Mischief; a possibly truth telling side that had been prominent in the conversation with Thor. But the Captain knew that they all had legitimate, good reasons for such absences in belief and trust.

Yet he himself doubted whether Loki was lying this time. After all, he did not lie all the time, a fact that had proven to be right the first time he had come to Earth; it wasn't that he always lied and it was hard to tell what he was planning, it was _when_ he was lying and what he was planning. A God born with a true Silver Tongue that was a master of deception and the being whom governed lies themselves did in fact tell the truth, even if it was hard to know when such things would occur.

"I don't think he's acting; this is genuine." Steve finished, preparing himself for the onslaught of disagreements and accusations of insanity, the latter of which would most likely come from Tony.

As he had suspected, he was greeted by looks of bewilderment.

"Already brainwashed you, has he?" Clint remarked snidely from his seat not too far from the the wide, touch screen TV, which was actually multi purposely used for presentations too. "My, my, I never thought that Captain America was _so_ weak minded."

"Cut it out right there, Barton," Steve barked, turning to face the smaller man with a look of authority, "I've seen men in similar positions to him acting the same way. This is not a part he's playing, and we certainly can't wave it off as one. At least not until we know otherwise."

Clint chuckled darkly, shaking his head a little, before looking up at the Captain with a look of malice on his face, "getting a little senile in your age are we, old man? Are you for getting who this is, more importantly what he's done?"

"No, I haven't, just the opposite in fact," the soldier replied quickly, "I just think we're forgetting Loki was not always the villain. Thor described him as the exact opposite last year."

"What and you're going to trust his judgement? He thinks of Loki like he's a saint, no matter what he's done. That bastard has managed to make his entire world think of him that way now, after all he did? Doesn't that tell you something!?" The archer exclaimed, raising his voice.

"Yeah, it does." Steve began, turning deadly serious now with a hint of spite entering his tone, "I don't trust Loki any more than you, Barton, but I'm also not so quick to condemn a man who has been released because he is believed to be changed. Personally, I think you're just using the fact that Loki controlled you as an excuse to do as you wish and get a sympathy vote from everyone. Well, you're not getting one from me," The solider could see the expression on Barton's face twitch from neutral to immense anger for a brief moment. At least he was getting somewhere, sometimes you had to knock people down and let them get up themselves before they would accept a fact of change. The question was, how long would it take Barton to realise this?

"I think you're just being selfish, Barton. Manipulating others to be on your side, in a way, you're turning into Loki, not being the opposite," at that, Steve knew that he had hit a very exposed nerve, but what had been said, had needed to be said, for it was the truth.

Clint rose from his seat so fast it was as if it was on fire and went to strike the captain straight in the jaw. . . only to have his fist seized with little effort from Steve, "What would you know about it!? You didn't have your personality rewritten! You didn't feel what it was like to know who you are at one time and then become a completely new person, whose only reason for living is to serve! You have no idea of what it was like!" he struggled to free his hand, but the soldier's iron grip had no relent on him.

He was released moments later however and the captain walked past him, towards the door leading to one of the long, straight corridors to the Helicarrier, "Think about what I've said, Barton, it could help you sometime," and with that, he left, slightly tense, but not anywhere near infuriated enough to explode with anger.

Stark was quick to follow, but only after Natasha had given him a look that had told him to leave the room... _silently._

Once they were alone in the room, the spy rose from her chair and silently stepped in front of Clint, looking at his now bowed head. His entire body was so tense and filled with adrenalin that he visibly shook, to some it would look violent enough to need to question the archer's health, but Natasha knew otherwise. His knuckles where a pale white and the veins in his hands and arms had popped out. But his bowed head was the most concerning element of his current stance. Clint _never_ bowed his head in situations like this unless he had been given a rare scolding from a higher agent for not following mission objectives precisely or if he lost a friend who had died on a mission. Another rare occurrence.

Therefore after a heated argument filled with insults, he should not feel this way, yet he did. But Natasha knew that it would be wise to deal with this now, or at least try to, so that his anger would not fester any more than it had been after Loki's unexpected return.

"Clint," she said quietly, getting him to look up at her, the anger still present in his eyes, but there was something else there, another emotion with a strong presence in his blue eyes... a sense of agreement. "Let's sit down," she suggested. The archer complied, letting out a quivering sigh and resting his head in his hands. Beside him, Natasha watched with a concerned expression, "Come on, Clint, I know you have something to say. Get it out of your system."

Rubbing his temples, Barton sat up and glanced at the woman beside him, seeing her stare pressing him into voicing his thoughts, "What do you think?" He asked.

"About what?" Natasha answered, in some ways she knew what he was asking, but was simply making conversation.

"This," he said, raising his arms to gesture the room, "About Loki. The mess we're in now?" he gave her a look that said he wanted her own, honest opinion.

It was now the spy's turn to sigh. She looked away, before looking back at him, "I think that Loki can't be trusted, that he's trying to deceive us and is plotting something against us again, but. . . then I also think that he might be a different person than he was before and maybe that he's on our side."

There was a painful silence for around a minute, so prominent that it hung over the room like a dark storm cloud. In a way, Clint had been expecting that sort of response from Natasha, but he had also wished that she would have been more on his side of the fence, because looking at the situation right now, no one else was.

"What about cap's words just now?" he asked, wanting-no, _needing_ an honest opinion from her.

Natasha was about to reply when Fury walked in through the door, catching the attention of both the agents. "Agent Romanoff, I need to on the bridge now, I have a mission for you." Just as quickly as he came, Fury left the room and waited outside. He didn't need to inquire about anything that had happened, most notably about why Stark and Rogers had abandoned the room, because he had been watching the play back of the CCTV footage before he came just now. It was troublesome that Loki could manage to cause so much conflict between the group simply by being on the helicarrier. Whereas before he had deliberately laid out a plan to cause turmoil, now his reappearance had done just as much damage, perhaps even more so than before. But who was to say this was not part of a scheme of his? All Fury knew was that he would be keeping an eye on Loki, while warily trusting him as well. Just as Natasha had two opinions, he did as well.

Reluctantly, Natasha rose from her seat, giving an apologetic glance towards Clint before making for the door, only to be stopped by one last question, "Nat, do you have an answer?"

She turned to him before leaving, her face now a blank, unreadable slate, "Only one that you already know."

Barton was left to his thoughts.

* * *

Natasha followed Fury as they walked to the bridge, only being just down the corridor from it. That had been how the Avengers had gotten to and from the bridge to the break room so quickly. It was useful when one went on a break too, that way there was no excuse for being late back from a lunch break or something. It was the director's own personal input in the design of the helicarrier, since he had wanted to maintain correct time keeping and efficiency. Not a bad idea really.

Once they strolled out near the centre of the bridge, where the table was but at the back of it, they made sure to stay on the far side, quite a distance from Thor and Loki. It would be unwise to have them know of this mission right now, especially if peace and order were to be maintained.

The director turned to the spy, speaking quietly, but leaning in close so he could be heard, "Romanoff, I'm sending you to get Banner," Fury explained, making sure he was out of earshot of the two gods. "We need him in on this, and I think you're the only one who can tell him about Loki without the risk of an 'incident'."

Ah, Bruce Banner. Natasha had been wondering if he was going to come in at some stage and she was right; with the threat they were facing, they would need all the help they could get, even if it did come with 'breath taking anger management issues' as Tony would say. Speaking of the good doctor, hardly anyone had seen him since last year, only Stark had seen him once, but that was about it. "Where is he now?" Natasha questioned, curious as to how a man with so many people after him could easily disappear.

"Rio." Came the simple reply.

This raised an eyebrow of confusion, "You can't be serious!" she exclaimed quietly.

"Unfortunately, I am. Banner sure knows how to pick his hiding spots; it's a good place really. With the amount of people there, it would be very difficult to find him." The director pointedly smirked after saying this, his next words explaining his expression. "Of course, S.H.I.E.L.D knows exactly where he is and that gets us to the point of the mission. We've arranged a spot for you to meet Banner, all that needs to be done is for you to explain the situation and get him back here quickly. Without causing any 'incidents'. Sound good?"

"Yes sir," The spy nodded, knowing that this was something that needed to be done quickly, but with a gentle hand. She had no doubt in her mind that Banner would come to aid them, it was just possibly getting him to stay calm that could prove tricky. Though he had remarkable control, the Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D could not risk a Hulk out on board the helicarrier upon seeing Loki. This may lead to an angry Asgardian God attacking Banner in his angry state if the God of Mischief was thrown around like a rag doll. Thor was not one to attack out of blind anger, and could end up just trying to stop The Hulk, but an entire scenario like this was avoidable and that was the ideal in everyone's minds.

"Good, the jet taking you there leaves in ten minutes, I suggest you get a move on." He watched her leave the room hurriedly, before turning around to receive a report from Agent Hill, regarding the readings of the Fire Demon attack.

From the other side of the bridge, Thor and Loki stood with their backs to the director, supposedly immersed in conversation about the current goings on in Asgard and what not. The latter with his hands clasped behind his back and his head was slightly turned to one side, before it faced forwards again. The God of Mischief continued to listen to Thor's words, an ever so slight smirk touched the sides of his lips.

* * *

Catching up to the captain after he had left the room, Tony began to walk beside him at first before coming in front of him and halting his path. Steve had been very quick to leave the room in an attempt to not cause a further continuation of his clash with Barton. It was rare that the soldier worked up such anger, in fact, the last time he had was last year when he had spoken to Stark just before the attack of the helicarrier. Oh he had been raring to go then, on the very brink of snapping for the first time in seventy years... but Loki's attack had prevented that and had actually formulated the group to temporarily work as a team, as well as get Barton back. This of course had then developed into the team that lead the primary line of defence in the battle of New York.

The trickster had caused both good and bad on that day. The loss of countless lives, but the assembling of an unstoppable team. The Avengers.

And now as Steve looked down at the man standing in front of him, he was so easily reminded of Howard as he looked upon Tony. He had his father's genius and even more so. He had the definite nature of a player that the Stark of his day had worn proudly on his chest. But he had also heard of how that had changed after he had been lost to the ice. The soldier knew that Howard had never given up the search, even after all of those years, until the day he died. And in turn, this had created a jealousy within that man's own son, towards a man though dead by almost all. However, that was a factor in giving new light to Tony's genius; to strive to be better than this man, whom he now knew. And even if his father had said otherwise to him on video, at least there had been something to motivate him to truly become the man he is today.

Steve had given this much thought over the year since he met Stark. The millennium may have changed and the technology, but the world's basic ways of working had not and neither had the Stark family. They were sarcastic, ostentatious, but noble at heart. It was just finding that nobility; that was the problem.

It was within the next moments that Tony had halted his path that he made his first comment, "You know, I'm aware that everyone has their spats every now and then, but that was a little harsh for you back there, wasn't it?" He said, wagging his index finger at the soldier pointedly.

Steve let out a sigh, before sitting down by the wall to his right, his elbows resting on his knees. His head bowed for a second, before he looked not at Tony, but straight ahead at the wall opposite, "Perhaps it was, but some of it happened to be the truth. Even if I did go a bit overboard," his eyes flickered to look up at Stark, who sat down next to him shortly after.

"A bit? You just told him he was acting like his number one enemy!" the genius exclaimed, trying to bring humour to the situation. He didn't want everyone to be too gloomy and depressed, that would only make them lose this fight against the Fire Demons.

"Okay, I went overboard by a lot!" Rogers said in a frustrated tone, "That still doesn't change the fact that a lot of what I said is true and Barton needs to accept that."

There was a brief, slightly awkward silence, at least in Tony's case anyway. It was broken when the inventor asked a question, "So why did you defend Loki?" This caused Steve to look at Stark, a blonde eyebrow raised to give off a confused expression, "I mean I know that you're probably thinking the same as all of us."

"And what's that?" the captain questioned.

"That Loki can't be trusted but at the same time we kinda have to trust him." Tony explained, gaining a few nods from Steve to confirm his suspicions, "So, why were you so quick to take the shots for tall, dark and quite possibly, no longer evil?"

The question, now reworded, hung over the air in an extended pause.

"You know about what I used to be like, before the serum?" Steve knew that Tony knew already, but he wasn't sure just how much he knew on the subject, "I had so many illnesses; Asthma, Scarlet Fever, Rheumatic Fever, Sinusitis, Chronic or frequent colds, High Blood Pressure, Heart trouble... you name it, I probably had it and the shirt to go with it too." Stark snickered a little; had Captain America just make a joke? Maybe the genius was rubbing off on him. Either that or Rogers had a secret sense of humour that no one was allowed to know about. But still, it slightly saddened Tony that Steve could recite all of the names of the illnesses he's had as if he were reading his medical history. Was there once a time where he would have needed to say them all by heart, or was it just drummed into his head over the years he was reminded of all of them, teased and bullied because of them even.

"But I was always willing to help with something or even anything, but no one wanted me. I tried to sign up for the army five times, and that's when I got on to the Super Soldier program. But even after I changed and got this body, no one wanted me for more than doing a few shows and lifting a few heavy objects. It wasn't until I saved over two hundred men more or less single-handedly did they start to deploy me on dangerous, frontline missions. They didn't give me a chance, Tony, I had to make one myself. And that's what I think Loki is doing right now; he's looking for a chance to help out, but no one wants him."

Steve sighed heavily, "I know I didn't do the things he's done, but if we keep pushing him to the side without considering his help, then he'll try to make a chance for himself, just to show his skills aren't worthless. But he could do that in a right way, or he could supposedly go back to being evil and do it the wrong way. And I prefer a reformed God over an evil one." The captain rested his head against the wall behind him, looking up at the ceiling. Wisdom of a ninety year old man reflected in his eyes; he knew war better than anyone on the team, (except maybe Thor, but that was a different case) and it still saddened him to think that even after two World Wars, the human race was still fighting each other over petty things; money, politics, religion, all he had ever wanted as a child was to have everyone get on and respect each other. But even after seventy years, nothing changed.

It was true then; that the date may have changed and the technology, but the world's basic ways of working had not one bit. It really was saddening and any one of Steve's time who could recognise it, all felt the same way.

"So you see yourself in Loki. . . not a first in my experience, though I have also heard far weirder stuff in my time," Tony paused for a few moments in his rambling, trying to search for the words he wanted to say. "Okay, listen to me, I'm not going to repeat this; there is a slight possibility that I actually agree with you... about everything."

"Wait, say that again," Steve said in a playfully surprised tone, "in my _old_ _age,_ I didn't quite catch that."

Stark's eye's widened, "two jokes in one conversation, the world is ending... actually, with the Fire Demons and all that, it really is." He feigned a gasp and pointed an accusing finger at the captain, lowering his voice to a maddened whisper, "and it's all your fault!" He snickered after, having decided to try and be as least serious as possible from now on to shed light on the situation, "but seriously, cap, I think everyone agrees with you on that on. Also, give bird brain a few hours to cool off and he'll be fine. I mean, you did just ruffalize his feathers back there."

Steve put on a confused look, "ruffalize? Is that even a word?"

"Ruffalize? You never heard of Mark Ruffalo?" Tony asked, receiving a shake of the head in response, "He looks a lot like Banner. I need to educate you on these things." He stood up and stretched, "come on, let's go and grab a coffee; doubt I'll be getting any sleep at all tonight with Loki running free on board."

Steve got up and followed him to the break room, a burden that had been resting upon him for a long while now suddenly lifted and a small smile on his face.

* * *

Within the hours that followed, now stretching into the early hours of the morning, Natasha had managed to persuade Bruce to come on board with the next mission. It hadn't been all that difficult really, he had seemed up for it before she even spoke. Years as a spy had taught her many things about people's postures and facial expressions; she knew how to read people's emotions, even by slight quirks in their eyes or fidgeting with hair. Oh, she knew how to tell when someone was lying all right, except for Loki of course. He wasn't the God of Mischief and Lies for nothing it seemed. But other than that, she was an expert at reading people's thoughts through their faces and speech patterns. Yet Bruce had appeared completely open and up for the mission; it had not been that hard at all to get him on board the jet beck to the helicarrier to be honest...

_It had long since gotten dark in Rio when Natasha landed in the Quinjet on the outskirts of the city. It was not a lie to say though, that Rio de Janeiro was far from quiet at this time, even if she was just on the edge of town. The parties could possibly be heard from miles away, not that it mattered to the spy much; she would not be there very long. Disembarking the Quinjet, Natasha was soon driven to the location she was going to meet with Bruce at, by one of the Agents flying the jet. The city was lit up brighter than a Christmas tree and even rivalled New York at night. The lights beautiful along the beach city were over looked by one of the tallest statues in the world; Cristo Redentor or Christ the Redeemer. And ironically, this was the very spot where she was going to meet Banner; right next to one of the world's most famous landmarks._

_Banner was there waiting for her when she arrived at the monument, taking in the view from the top of the Corcovado mountain, that over looked a majority of the city. It was almost breath taking if you were only seeing it for the first time, but Natasha had seen many sights like this before and as she was currently on a mission, she had no time to spare appreciating the magnificent view._

_"Doctor Banner," she called, coming up behind him. He turned to face her, dressed in a beige suit with a purple shirt, his glasses tucked into the inside pocket on the left side of his blazer jacket._

_He smiled and greeted her, "Natasha," before getting down to business, "What do you need me for? Or rather, what does S.H.I.E.L.D need me for?"_

_"We're facing another threat, but this time it could mean the destruction of Earth." Natasha explained, not giving away too much so she could entice the doctor into agreeing to help. "I'm not allowed to say anymore unless you're on the mission, unfortunately._

_"Wait, as in all life wiped out destruction? Even bacteria!? How-"_

_"I'll explain on the jet if you're in. We don't know how much time we have. I also need to have your assurance that you will stay calm once I impart certain information to you." They did not want any Hulk outs when it wasn't necessary Last time, everyone nearly died when the helicarrier almost fell from the sky. The Hulk may not have started the destruction, but he certainly contributed to it._

_"Alright, let's go," Bruce said quickly, wanting to know if there was anything he could possibly to to help..._

_"_ So Loki's back, the world's being threatened with ultimate destruction, instead of absolute control. Thor dragged Loki here to have him help us stop it from happen and on top of all of it, the thing that wants to destroy us is head of a race of giant monsters more or less made of fire…" Bruce said, mentally ticking off all of the information that Natasha had just told him. "We're in quite the situation then," he concluded.

"Pretty much," the spy replied. She looked out of the windows at the front of the Quinjet, "We're going to be landing in a minute, Loki might still be on the bridge so-"

"Don't worry, I'll be fine," he reassured her. They both knew what she meant, it didn't need repeating.

"Just doing my job, Bruce," Natasha said, nodding understandably. They got off of the Quinjet. They made their way towards the bridge as quick as possible, passing by a few other Agents in the process. When they got to the bridge however, they were greeted, or at least Bruce was, by a rather strange sight.

Tony and Steve were sitting next to each other at the table, each with a mug of coffee. It looked like the genius was trying to explain to the soldier how touch screen worked, but he wasn't getting very far with that. Steve meanwhile just looked bewildered. Despite their argument, Barton was sitting at the table with them, although not next to them, it appeared that they could have a mutual, unspoken apology going on. Natasha would have to sort that out later. Across the room, at the far side of the cat walk like structure in the middle, stood Thor and Loki, seemingly reminiscing about a time they had taken down a pack of Bilgesnipe or whatever. It was an odd sight anyway, seeing the God of Mischief not acting so evil anymore... if that was the case anyway. Lastly, he saw the still alive and kicking Agent Coulson, who pointed out to the director that they had arrived. The whole bridge went silent and everyone turned to look at Bruce, who managed to lock eyes with Loki for a brief moment, before...

"Well, I've missed something, haven't I?" He said nervously, not liking having all eyes on him.

From the other side of the room, Loki's lips curled upwards slightly.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading and your support!


	6. The Second Great Fire of London

Avengers Assemble: Loki's Redemption

Chapter 6: The Second Great Fire of London

_Tony and Steve were sitting next to each other at the table, each with a mug of coffee. It looked like the genius was trying to explain to the soldier how touch screen worked, but he wasn't getting very far with that. Steve meanwhile just looked bewildered. Despite their argument, Barton was sitting at the table with them, although not next to them, it appeared that they could have a mutual, unspoken apology going on. Natasha would have to sort that out later. Across the room, at the far side of the cat walk like structure in the middle, stood Thor and Loki, seemingly reminiscing about a time they had taken down a pack of Bilgesnipe or whatever. It was an odd sight anyway, seeing the God of Mischief not acting so evil anymore... if that was the case anyway. Lastly, he saw the still alive and kicking Agent Coulson, who pointed out to the director that they had arrived. The whole bridge went silent and everyone turned to look at Bruce, who managed to lock eyes with Loki for a brief moment, before..._

_"Well, I've missed something, haven't I?" He said nervously, not liking having all eyes on him._

_From the other side of the room, Loki's lips curled upwards slightly._

"Banner!" Tony exclaimed, but not getting up from his seat, "Nice of you to finally join the party!"

Bruce rolled his eyes slightly, but smiled anyway, glancing around at everyone with a nervous expression as he took off his blazer jacket, folding it over one arm. "Hi guys," Looking over at the God of Mischief who stood on the other side of the bridge next to the God of Thunder, he felt a slight spike in his heart rate, but kept it under control. Shocking everyone, he strolled up to Loki, his height clearly inferior when compared with the God's. He stuck out a hand in front of him, introducing himself, "Hi, I'm Bruce Banner... I er, don't think we met properly last time," Loki raised a quizzical eyebrow; he was wary of this man, or rather, the beast that slept within him, "well I mean, you met the other guy..." Bruce mumbled. Unlike the others, he believed that if he could settle the rift between him and Loki simply by acknowledging that he was meant to be there to help, then working with him would be easier. Especially since he thought that out of all of them, the God was most wary of him.

Accepting the gesture, Loki struck his right arm out and grasped the forearm of the man in front of him, the old and known way to Thor and Loki on how to greet another as a sign of friendship and indifference. Though Bruce was not familiar with this practice, so it all in fact ended up to be rather awkward, "Then I am pleased to make _your_ acquaintance, Banner. I already knew who you were, but a proper meeting is always better," the Trickster said, trying to settle the rift between them. If there was one thing he knew for certain, he did not want to be thrown around like a rag doll once again, so he would try and stay on the doctor's good side. They let go of each other's forearm's quickly though, for in that gesture, the longer one held it, meant the more trust that was between the two. Bruce understood that much and did not want to perform wrong in the old custom. Loki also knew that it was best as well, obviously well versed in the practice.

Banner nodded in understanding; hopefully they had settled a rift between them. Even though is was a small gesture and no apologies were given, it was a small step. In some ways, the two were alike; they both liked to study and make breakthroughs, be it in science or magic, much like Stark did. Perhaps with this small gesture from arguably the most unpredictably dangerous of the group, the rest of them would follow suit. Though it did not have to be said that Barton would need a lot of persuading to lose his grudge against the God of Mischief. "Yours too. It's better to meet in less tense atmospheres," there, it was settled, at least for now. A small truce and trust forged, surely to become bigger and grow into something far more renowned. Trust could be gained in any amount of time after all.

Inputting his own bit, Thor turned the attention on himself, having been eager to see Banner, a man who was not only intelligent, but in his other form, could prove himself a match for even the Thunder God, "Tis good to see you once again, Banner. I trust you have been well?" He asked, looking down at the smaller man with a beaming smile that put even Fandral to shame.

"Good enough," Bruce said, smiling back a little. He did feel a little intimidated by the two Gods towering over him, but he was okay with it. Thor was smiling at him with all the kindness his golden heart could give, like the charming prince he was. Still a little cocky maybe, but that just gave him character. He ruled with his heart, not his head, that was Loki's job. Thor was the one who felt emotions the most, allowing them to fill his heart; happiness, despair, emptiness. He felt it all and used it as his fuel to help him fight. His greatest strength was most likely not his lightning, but his ability to understand how others were suffering. He may not be as wise as his brother, but he certainly had a more intelligent head on his shoulders than he normally let on or than what most thought. This much, Bruce could tell. Loki was the strategist and the sorcerer, a more behind the scene type of guy, at least until a year ago. Thor was the outgoing and louder one, but knew now when to vent his feelings and when to be diplomatic.

Looking at Loki, Banner saw he had an impassive look and did not look anything like he had done a year ago. It was almost as if he were like how Thor had described him; refined, calm and regal, but sometimes he had a touch of humour and mischief about him. Not evil. Not chaotic. Just mischievous. He could joke if he wanted to and was serious and calculative when he needed to be. Not like the insanity that had been flowing through him last year, making him look like he belonged in an asylum or dead. No, he looked like the prince he had been described as, only more battle worn. He seemed to have stepped out of the shadows and now showed off his battle prowess for all to see, or at least, that is how Thor described it. He was no longer afraid to be who he was and hide his abilities, however he retained his composure now, unlike before he looked ready to discuss the situation. Yet despite this, there still seemed to be a sinister aura about him... faint, but still there.

"If you're done having your little boy band assembly over there, could we get a proper greeting too?" Tony asked, annoyed at the fact he was not the centre of attention and that the two gods were.

Thor and Loki shared quizzical a look after Stark said boy band, clearly not understanding what the genius was on about. However neither voiced this, not sure if they wanted to know what a boy band was.

Strolling back over to the table to join the others, the gods following him, Bruce went straight up to the director. The Agents on the bridge had now gone back to work, after being given the infamous one eyed Fury glare. No average mortal had a chance up against that glare and that was a fact. "Director," the doctor greeted, shaking the man's hand.

"Thank you for coming once again, Doctor Banner," Fury said in reply, grateful they had a little more man power now. Well, The Hulk counted for a lot more than one man, but Bruce's intellect should come in useful too.

"So er, what's the situation exactly now? What are we trying to do?" Bruce questioned, not knowing where they were at with the whole crisis.

"To be honest, none of us even know right now. I thought it best to have everyone on board before we went along with what to do," Fury explained. It was reasonable, it would just get confusing if people were coming in at different times and didn't know what to do. This way was far more effective.

Speaking after having been silent for ages, Steve offered a solution, "We should try and predict where they'll strike next."

"This realm has different times in different sectors, due to how your world shifts around the sun, correct?" Thor asked, knowing that he was likely to be correct, but he had to validate his point, for if he was right, he had a good idea that he could help pinpoint where they would strike. The mortals nodded at him, and he continued, "Looking at their battle history and strategies, Fire Demons tend to attack at dusk or dawn. Preferably dusk, but in past wars they have used this as a way of eluding us as to when they strike."

From the corner, Barton spoke up, something completely unexpected by those who knew of what had happened earlier, "I don't know about dusk, but dawn should have already broken in some parts of Europe, if not then the sun is about to rise."

"Europe... Sitwell!" Fury called out, the mentioned agent turning in his chair to face the man, "Look up all of the local times in Europe and check the news reports for anything that's burning!"

"Yes sir!" Sitwell replied, getting to work quickly.

A few seconds passed before it happened.

The two Gods both felt it, a sudden, sharp pain in their heads as if they were being stabbed in the skull by a knife. It was painful enough to have both of them stagger back, clutching their heads, Loki nearly falling over due to feeling it more. They both knew it was because of magic penetrating the realm so harshly that they had felt it. Loki far more than Thor however, due to how in tune with the flow of magic he was. But the Thunderer had certainly felt the pain in his head and had stagger back a couple of paces because of it too. This had raised concern amongst everyone, because it couldn't be a lie from Loki even if he was there to help this time, if Thor had reacted in the same way too.

Recovering, the older god glanced at his younger brother, concerned as Loki still clutched his head loosely and had his eyes shut. He calmed however, when the younger god opened his eyes and turned to look at him, "That was not a normal occurrence for this realm."

"Indeed-" Loki was about to reply fully, but an interruption from Sitwell caught their attention.

"Sir, we have a location of the next attack; it's just begun," the Agent said.

Fury instantly turned to him, "Where?"

"The UK sir," Sitwell replied, "it looks big." Everyone stood up at this point; ready to leave as soon as they could.

Coming up behind Fury, the Thunder God spoke up, "What part of this realm do they attack now?" Thor questioned, summoning Mjolnir to his hand, preparing to fly out to battle.

"England, more specifically, the city of London," Fury replied. Thor was about to question where this place was, but Loki soon provided him with the location.

"That is north east of here, brother," Loki explained.

Fury raised an eyebrow, "How did you know that?"

"My senses with magic are good enough that I can detect magic even if it is far away. The amount of energy we just felt was such a copious amount; it affected us when it was used to tear a portal into this realm. A crude, but effective use of magic." The God of Mischief explained. His words seemed believable, after all, he and Thor had experienced the same thing just now and it certainly did not look false. Fury took it as the truth for now.

"Then we should make haste," Thor said, making his way to the door. Loki followed, but went to pick up his weapons from the table first, only to have the barrel of Agent Hill's gun pointed at the side of his head.

Loki sighed, "If you wish for me to fight in this battle and prevent lives from being lost, then you should let me gather my weapons and set out within the next minute. There is no time to be wasted when Fire Demons attack."

"How do we know we can trust you?" She asked.

"Hill, let him go," Fury ordered. The Agent lowered her handgun reluctantly, watching the Mischief God clear the table of his weapons swiftly, before heading off with Thor. The other Avengers followed suit, Tony going to where he had stored the Iron Man armour and Cap, Natasha, Bruce and Clint made their way to the hanger to get a Quinjet.

Thor and Loki, already outside where the jets were in the pale moonlight, left first, the older god grabbing the younger's back collar once again before taking off north east towards England. Shortly after they had done this, Thor asked Loki a question, "Loki, how much magic did you feel just now?" He yelled over the sound of the wind. He was flying slowly, waiting for Tony and the Quinjet to catch up.

"Enough to allow a small army to pass through at best," the Trickster replied.

A wrenching in Thor's gut alerted him to the fact that the mortals of the place they were going to would suffer great losses if they did not get there quickly. "We cannot wait. I can get us there faster than the others can possibly hope to arrive, we will have to wait for aid to come, Loki. You understand this, do you not!?" He shouted in a worried tone.

"Yes, I do. Now fly faster or the mortals maybe vanquished before we even arrive," Loki replied, keeping an eye on the sea that stretched before them, and his senses tuned in case there was any change in any magical forces.

Further away, the Quinjet and Tony saw the two Gods speed up and disappear. They knew Thor was fast, but they had no idea he was that fast. Speeding up also, Stark contacted those aboard the Quinjet.

"Guys, I'm going to follow Thor's example and get there quickly," He said, checking the power of his suit and asking J.A.R.V.I.S to calculate how long it would take him to get there at full speed, before speeding on ahead and getting out of sight.

"Go ahead, Stark, I don't think we can afford to have anyone deliberately hanging back," Steve replied. He turned to face the doctor, "Doctor Banner, are you okay with us going fast?"

"I'll be fine, cap, don't worry. I have it under control," he replied, just wanting to get there and help, even if he had to be the other guy to do so.

One thing everyone knew however was that England had to hold on until they got there.

* * *

As it had done so on parts of the Middle realm, night had also fallen upon Asgard, shrouding the sky in brilliant darkness covered with more stars than even an immortal god could count. It was a peaceful night, even the tavern was quiet, the city of the gods having been fairly shaken with the attack from the Fire Demons. It was not because they had attacked, it was that they had managed to slip past Heimdall's gaze, something that Loki, a master of magic and the most powerful sorcerer in the realm was known to be able to do. This had left everyone on high alert in the event of another attack. Though no one had been harmed past a small burn here and there, the Allfather had doubled the guard patrols, ordered all of the people to stay in their homes and be ready to fight if need be. Although it had been the guard that had defended the people, everyone in the realm was taught how to fight at some point. After all, this was the way of the warrior gods.

Now however, in the dead of night, Odin sat upon his throne, four figures knelt before him on one knee, their arms drawn across their chests over their hearts, fists clenched. Their heads were bowed in the utmost respect before their king and they were unlikely to rise until they were told to, which they were. "Stand, Warrior's Three, Lady Sif," the Allfather commanded. The mentioned obliged and stood to face their king. Fandral and Volstagg stood on the outside of the Goddess of War and Hogun, all wearing grim faces, a trait unexpected of all of them. Even Hogun's face was grimmer than usual and that was saying something. They shared a sense of regret between them, as if they had wronged someone...

"I wished to thank you personally for playing your parts well in Loki's release, though things obviously did not proceed according to how it was planned. However, you all were believable down to the last second and for that, I thank you." Odin's words were said with an inkling of approval as he gazed upon a few of his most loyal subjects.

They all nodded with gratitude at the thanks given to them by the king; it was one of the highest rewards a warrior could receive after all. Sif however, had many queries about the subject of lying to the Mischief God. It had not gone down well with Loki in the past and surely would not do so again, "Allfather, I request permission to speak." She had to go in being overly polite, because what she was about to say, could Odin on and extreme level. Something no one wanted.

Raising a single eyebrow at her very polite request, the Allfather granted her permission to voice her thoughts, "I give you leave to speak, Sif."

Taking in a small breath, Sif looked straight at the king, "I ask why we had to lie to Loki? He will not take this well should he find out-" she was cut off before her point was made, an unusually calm Odin interrupting her.

"By simply releasing Loki, without returning his former titles and possessions to him in front of the people, they would not have taken to him being released as well as they did. I voiced what was true; I do believe that I am partly responsible for all that has transpired, however, I am not the only one to blame. Loki should not have reacted to this in the way he did; trying to subjugate an entire race is unacceptable. I must lie therefore, in order to gain his trust. With that, and the support of the people, I believe we can truly repair that damage that has been done." It could not be denied that there was reason in Odin's words; what he was trying to achieve was a restored bond between Loki and Asgard. However, he was going about it in the wrong way; lying to the God of Lies was now almost impossible and to do so would only really cause more conflict between him and the Allfather.

Yet Odin could not see this. He wished to have Loki back to how he was. Unfortunately, this was not possible; his younger son had stepped out of his shell and had now proven his power and his cravings for the throne, or at least to be valued as worthy of it. But the one undermining factor was that Odin did not trust Loki. . . so he had planned to release and test him to see if he was fit to be freed from imprisonment. To see if he would go back to how he was; doing things for the good of the realm, not trying to take and rule it. That is why he had said what he had and lied, at least he thought so.

"Then, there will be no more need for lies," the king finished. "Does that answer your question, Sif?"

The Goddess of War nodded in reply, not believing nor understanding a word of what Odin had just said. Why not tell Loki straight what his thoughts were? Lies only lead to more lies and in the end, someone will be hurt from discovering the truth. She knew Odin had told some of the truth; he did feel responsible for what happened, but with all that Loki did in retaliation to the truth, he had found it easier to place the blame on his son, not facing the truth for himself. If he had wanted to see if the Mischief God was ready to be released and go back to normal duties without raising a threat, should he not have visited Loki himself? She saw no logic in Odin's words nor his plan.

Sif and The Warrior's Three all shared on thought; they may have not been the best and kindest friends to Loki, teasing him endlessly and such. Sometimes they thought it troublesome if he were to come on journeys with them, but ever since his supposed 'death' after falling off of the Bifrost, they had missed him. Regretted their actions and most importantly, they were a few who had slightly mourned his passing. They knew they were no replacement to Thor after he had lost Loki, but then again, Thor would never replace any of his friends, and neither would Loki on most occasions. They had very little right to call themselves his friends in their opinion, but they all wanted things back to how they were, only with no secrets, no lies. And they all vowed to be better friends to him in the foreseeable future.

"You are all dismissed," The God of Wisdom said. He waited until they had left the dark throne room, lit up only by fires that kept the palace warm too, before reflecting on some of his words to Loki. . .

_"Your crimes committed against both Asgard and Midgard, are punishable by death-"_

_"Then just sentence me already!" Loki exclaimed, "Sentence me to the death that you know damn well that I deserve! Kill me, like the monster I am. I don't care how slow it is or how painful it is, just end my life. I know you want to." Loki paused for a split second, "Have I not suffered enough this past year, waiting for death's embrace? Waiting for you to announce my demise was torture enough, so just kill me now and be done with it!" the God of mischief yelled. A pained expression tore across his face; it was similar to the one that he'd had after he had yelled at Odin to tell him of his true heritage, but this time it was more distraught._

_The Allfather looked into Loki's emerald eyes; they were pleading for death, a death that he had long expected. A death that Odin would not give, "No, Loki" the Allfather said. Thor felt utter relief wash over him, as did Frigga. A set of whispers broke the silence that had dwindled in the air for a few seconds. These whispers, however, were stopped by the sound of Gungnir tapping on the golden floor of the throne room. Silence washed over the room once again, "Your crimes may be punishable by death," Loki hung his head, "However, I am partly to blame for your actions."_

_A loud gasp that was shared by the Asgardians filled the throne room. Loki's head shot up so he was looking straight at Odin, "Allfather, you are not the one who should be blamed, I-"_

_"Silence, Loki" Odin commanded. The young God instantly obeyed, but kept his gaze fixed on the Allfather, "I am to blame. I should have told you of your true heritage a long time ago, instead of keeping the truth from you and having you accidentally stumble across it during your journey to Jotunheim. If I am correct, that is what filled you with hate and lead you to take the actions you took. Am I correct?" The God of Wisdom asked._

_Loki muttered his answer and not even those who were nearest to him could hear it._

_"Speak up, my son, it matters not what your answer is."_

_"Yes, you are correct," Loki said quietly, but loud enough for everyone to hear._

_Odin seemed to approve of his son's answer and looked like he was smiling ever so slightly, but this could have just been an illusion. Which one it was, Loki did not know, but he did not care for that, he was more focused on what Odin was going to say next._

Getting up from his throne to retreat to his chambers at the top of the palace, there were only a few thoughts going around in Odin's mind; he regretted having to lie to his son once again, truly, he hated it. Loki's words to him, begging for an end to his suffering. . . it had pained him slightly to see it. Such words were never born of acting, not even the Trickster could pull off such a feat, in front of so many, so why did the Allfather worry slightly? All was sure to go as planned, and even if it did not, changes could be made easily. Thor would be the one to turn Loki back on the right path, instead of leaving him to dwindle in the darkness.

_Truly,_ Odin thought, _there is no way he could have known I was lying. Lies are told with parts of the truth are they not? Loki knows of this better than anyone. There was truth in my words and he believed it. There will be no conflict this time, I will make sure of it._

* * *

When Thor and Loki landed on top of Saint Paul's cathedral in London, the sun had barely risen above the sky, just resting on the horizon, but the city was already lit up like a Christmas tree. The fire had spread throughout both sides of the Thames river, burning everything in its path, climbing as tall as some buildings on one side and melting the tarmac roads. Firemen struggled to keep it under control, and had taken cover behind their Fire Engines to avoid the arrow storm coming at them. Some dying as they were hit by the lethal arrows of the Fire Demons, who took pleasure in the killing. Scattered throughout the streets already, there must have been around five hundred of them. Loki was right; it had been a small army that had passed through the now closed portal. This was but a mere taste of what Muspelheim could conjure from their depths. Surtur surely had far worse than planned and this was just a taunt of his.

Gazing around at the state the old and noble city was in, Loki shook his head disbelievingly "I do not think I have ever laid eyes upon so much fire..." Loki said, looking over the historic city with concern-no, a shocked look about his face. The heat here had risen and was far worse than anything Loki had experienced in his previous battles with the flaming entities. It was already affecting him and making his mind spin from the heat; he did not know if he could deal with it at first, but soon reminded himself that he had his strength to prove to everyone, not just those in Asgard. He would defend this city, these people. Even if he had to suffer injury or death in return.

"Nor do I." Thor replied, taking in all the destruction. Everything seemed to move in slow motion; the deaths of mortals running, their screams echoing in the early morning air. The desperate attempts of the emergency services to keep everything under control. The explosions of cars. The burning smell of flesh and wood as the raging fires tore through the city. It even brought shock to the Gods to see such sights, they were so terrible. "This clearly is no battle." He said, shifting his tone and mood to one of anger. He was ready for battle; to avenge the death of those who had never wronged the Fire Demons. He would bring them justice as they passed on.

Loki nodded, becoming serious himself now, his grip on his staff tightened and his mind set shifted into that of focusing on the impending battle, rather than his weakness to heat, "You are right... this is only slaughter. This destruction, these deaths... all of them are uncalled for." That was when both of them saw a mother being incinerated to protect her child, who had ran on into a small building, which was safe for now. The mother's screams rolled off of the buildings and echoed in the Gods' ears as she became a pile of ashes upon the floor.

This is what instantly turned the mood of both Gods. They were meant to be the defender of the Nine Realms. They would not let this torture of the mortals increase while they still breathed. This attack ended now and so would the damned fire that had been caused!

"You long for vengeance too then, brother?" Thor questioned, sparing a glance at Loki, whose face was that of pure rage, just like his own. Now he was in his right mind again, he could see that this was exactly what he had done in the previous year and it was unacceptable. He had regained his sanity, now it was time for Surtur to pay dearly for this heinous crime.

"Not vengeance, Thor, I long for the ashes and deaths of these monstrous creatures!" Loki yelled, gaining the attention of a few of them.

Thor nodded, shifting into a battle stance with Mjolnir raised, "Aye, as do I!," they both leapt from the building, weapons raised and ready to strike, jumping as far as to land next to the river, "Have at thee, cursed demon!" He thundered, smacking Mjolnir into a Fire Demon's head so hard that it was knocked clean off. The cracking of the bones and the ripping off of the head under his hammer was satisfying to Thor, but he longed for the feeling more to ease his rage. Perhaps the whole army would do him nicely? Or at least half. Still, he would take down as many as he could find. The Flaming enemy turned to ashes almost instantly after decapitation, falling into a pile at the God's feet. Turning around, he spotted the others standing back a little, as if they were waiting for something. The God of Thunder simply gripped Mjolnir tighter, his faithful weapon, an extension of his arm really, poised to slay many Fire Demons on this day. "Come, which one of you is next?" He asked in a furious tone. He was met by ten of the foes coming at him with their blades raised.

Loki meanwhile had stabbed the demon in the head with his bladed staff, feeling the same satisfaction as Thor, enough to clear his head a little and calm him enough to think clearly. He was surrounded by fifteen Fire Demons, his brother seemed to be in the same situation, already fighting them off but the Trickster did not worry for him; Thor could handle anything thrown at him. Loki however, knew his limits and assessed the situation. It was time to work a little magic. He had not used spells in battle for two years now, and he longed for the use of his powers. He needed to exercise his magic and the river gave him the perfect opportunity.

Casting his left hand to the direction of the river Thames, Loki smiled as he summoned a surge of water to rise up in a round column, twisting with extreme speed and smack down upon him and the enemies around him, wiping out all of them. Although he was now soaked through, Loki was pleased with the fact he had now cooled down enough to fight to his full potential and headed back among the streets to look for more foes, heading away from the river and Thor. He would come back when he needed to cool down. It had been foolish of Surtur to pick this place as one to attack, since now Loki could fight on equal grounds as his foes and with Thor on his side. This battle was theirs for sure.

The God of Thunder smashed his hammer upon the ground, sending a shock wave which knocked most of the Fire Demons near him over, before summoning several lightning bolts to strike them down. The lightning also brought storm clouds with it, which in turn caused it to rain, a little something to help cool the atmosphere and fight the fires. Glancing around, Thor noticed that Loki had already moved on to another, more invaded area and decided to do the same, finding an entire square of Demons that needed dispatching of. Seeing his brother on one side, Thor took the other and they began to thin out the numbers a little.

It all looked like the battle was in their favour, for in a few minutes; Tony had arrived to join the fray, blasting his repulsors at them left, right and centre. They didn't know what hit them, since he was staying a decent distance away from the Fire Demons, knowing his armour could melt if he got too close. The rain helped however and the genius relayed all of this information back to the rest of the team in the Quinjet, "There's just over five hundred over them. Stay in the jet and take them out from the air, I don't think even my armour can take this heat, so stay off the ground."

"Give us ten minutes Stark, we'll be there," Natasha replied. She turned her head to look at Bruce from the cockpit, "Do you want us to land on a building, Banner, or shall we let you jump out the back while we're airborne?" Of course, she was referring to how Bruce wanted to 'suit up' as it were.

"Land, I don't want to cause too much collateral." He replied, focusing himself into a better mind set for when he transformed into the 'other guy'. All it required was calm focus really; something that Banner had become an expert in over the past few years. It was nothing complicated, just retaining a calm, controlled anger was the key to controlling The Hulk and that was something Bruce had good practice in.

But with the odds in their favour, why did Thor, Loki and Tony feel uneasy at how well the fight was in their favour? It was too easy a battle, even for two gods and a genius, they felt something was gravely wrong at the moment, so what was amiss exactly?

And that was when the reinforcement arrived through a second portal on the ground. All carried bows, and where noticeably bigger than the average Fire Demon. Standing as tall as the average Frost Giant, they towered over the two Gods, with axes in hand and feral grins. These Fire Giants did not have bodies made of fire like their lower grade cousins. No, the skin on these Giants was hotter and burned someone at a simple touch of skin from one not of their own. They were of a dark orange colour and dressed in simple furs made of the creatures that did not burn at their touch. Much of their skin was left uncovered, allowing them to easily burn anything. Grey fingernails sat upon battered hands and a craving for blood was seen in their pure black, featureless eyes.

The battle had now been turned back into the favour of Muspelheim.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading and supporting this fic! New chapter tomorrow and then it goes to weekly updates on both FF and here. If you want to read look out for this every Sunday!
> 
> Thanks.


	7. A Promise of Death

Avengers Assemble: Loki's Redemption

Chapter 7: A Promise of Death

_But with the odds in their favour, why did Thor, Loki and Tony feel uneasy at how well that victory was within their grasp? It was too easy, even for two gods and a genius at the moment, so what was wrong?_

_And that was when the reinforcement arrived through a second portal on the ground. All carried bows, and where noticeably bigger than the average Fire Demon. Standing as tall as the average Frost Giant, they towered over the two Gods, with axes in hand and feral grins. These Fire Giants did not have bodies made of fire like their lower grade cousins. No, the skin on these Giants was hotter and burned someone at a simple touch of skin from one not of their own. They were of a dark orange colour and dressed in simple furs made of the creatures that did not burn at their touch. Much of their skin was left uncovered, allowing them to easily burn anything. Grey fingernails sat upon battered hands and a craving for blood was seen in their pure black, featureless eyes._

_The battle had now been turned back into the favour of Muspelheim._

Backing away from the new reinforcements that had arrived to aid the small army of Muspelheim, Loki realised for quite possibly the first time in his long life, that he might not make it all the way through this ordeal alive. Even with Thor fighting at his side and to some extent, The Avengers, this whole battle in fact appeared too much for even him. Even when he had entered the void after falling off of the Bifrost, he had kept a small hope alive that he would survive and make it though, because where one hole is created, so is another. Doors did open from both sides after all. But now, as the truth finally dawned upon the God of Mischief, the truth that he may not live to see the end of this war, it dawned in fire. They should have acted sooner, marched upon the realm of fire itself and either demand and end to the attack, or fought their way through the realm to end it.

The heat had risen once more, lifting far above temperatures that Loki had ever experienced before, to the point where it was so unbearable that it began to make the Trickster's Jotun side act up. He could feel his natural ability to freeze things begin to cool the air around him slightly, without changing the colour of his skin. It was a small relief that granted him passage to clear thoughts once more. Glancing around, he noticed Thor had not moved away from the Fire Giants, instead standing firmly with Mjolnir spinning around faster than the mortal eye could see. Stark was circling slightly above him, doing good to stay away from the Demons and Giants. A wise decision indeed, because even he would be able to feel this heat, despite his armour. Lastly, he heard the sounds of the Quinjet arriving, just hovering in the air for a moment. No doubt the occupants of it were taking in the state of the city, both outraged and shocked.

Already it was worse than New York last year, the fires everywhere made sure to begin cindering anything it touched. If this continued for much longer, there would not be a London left to save.

Continuing with the battle, Thor cared little for the arrival of the Fire Giants, inhabitants of Muspelheim's second ring. The Fiery realm had a hierarchy, just like any world, of who was on top, and who was at the bottom. In the case of this planet, the beings with humanoid shapes were on top, and the rank in power was represented by the height of the lifeform. This was all with the exception of certain powerful creatures that also dwell within this realm. This put Demons at the bottom on the first ring and Giants just above them. No one really knew what came next after them, apart from the fact that Surtur sat on top of the pile and rumour had it that he was tall enough to touch the top of Asgard's palace without leaving the ground.

The Prince of Thunder waited until the oncoming enemies, a combination of Demon and Giant, were unfortunate enough as to come close to him, before charging at them with a mighty leap. His hammer spinning faster than a vortex, Thor smashed one of the Giants in the face with an uppercut from Mjolnir, sending it staggering back a fair few paces with a broken jaw, before finishing the top with a downward strike on its head. The Fire Giant burst into flames before turning to ashes that were then soaked by the pouring rain, which did little to help the heat. It was almost amusing how the Demon's and Giant's died in different ways, but Thor's rage at the destruction and death around him allowed no humour to spare at his foes' demise. He longed for battle, having been away from it for a year, skipping many sessions to train the guard to visit Loki in the dungeons. He needed to loosen up a little and this crisis on Earth, gave him a chance to do so. And to take care of a threat from a realm which had long been planning something to do with invasion or destruction. Muspelheim never stayed quiet for long unless Surtur wanted his army prepared.

Backhanding a Demon with Mjolnir, Thor spun around, his hammer mimicking his actions and swatted away anything that came towards him. The Fire Demons it appeared, could be ended with just one, powerful strike, whereas the Giants, their stronger counterparts, could take a lot more damage. However, none were a match for Crown Prince of Asgard.

Summoning a few lightning bolts to thin out the number of Demons and even one Giant, Thor gazed around the battle field, scanning it for Loki. Although he had not yet said anything, for the sake of preserving some of his brother's pride, he knew well enough how much the heat that these beings of the fire realm was affecting him. His Frost Giant heritage gave him a massive disadvantage against these foes and by all rights, he should not even be this close to them while fighting. He should be taking them on from a distance, or providing strategic assistance by calling out orders. But Thor would not say anything yet; he would not belittle Loki like he had done a few times in the past and how many others had done so as well. No, he would let him stay and showcase his power. It was the pain of being the elder brother, that sometimes you had to give your younger not what was best for them, but what they desired. And right now, Loki desired to be here and to help, so all Thor could do was oblige.

But that would not stop him from keeping a close eye on Loki.

He spotted his brother not too far away from him, at the other side of the rather large portal. But then he noticed something that forced him to worry more for the trickster. He had seen earlier that the God of Mischief had used the water from the river to cool his temperature significantly. However, this gateway into Midgard had been opened on the closest street that allowed access to the water, almost as if it had been planned that way. It would not have been too bad, considering there were several other roads that lead to the river, if the great fire, which was gradually beginning to die due to the blessed rain Thor had summoned, did not block off every other possible way as well. Loki was trapped in this small square now and unless he could find a way to get on top of a building, the God of Thunder feared for his brother. As of right now, he was unable to reach him directly without drawing the attention that was mainly focused on himself, upon the Mischief God, which would only make the situation worse.

The Thunder God hated it, but for the benefit of Loki, he would have to stay away from him to keep him safe. Or at least _safer_.

Returning to focus on his part of the battle, Thor gained the attention of his foes with a well placed taunt, after smashing in the head of a Giant of course, "Anyone else?" he questioned, looking about the others who were reluctant to step forward. "I once thought the armies of Muspelheim where a formidable force in battle. It appears I was wrong," at this the Prince of Thunder got what he wished; for them to all charge straight at him. Rolling his arm backwards, he threw Mjolnir with all his might at the oncoming enemies, the great hammer hitting several of them as it was not faulted in its flight.

* * *

Tony flew up, down, left and right around the area, ducking and diving as he went, firing repulsor blasts at anything that was either orange, or on fire. Seemingly, there was no end to this onslaught of an attack, and his own attacks did not look to affect the Fire Giants too much. Unlike Thor, who could take them down with a few power house hits, Stark was barely tickling them with his own. And this annoyed Tony to no end; he had designed his suits to be capable of taking down almost anything. However, this was one of the slightly older models, or at least, the genius would call it that. His new suit had been made only two days ago, on the day before he actually decided to get some proper rest. The one he wore now was last week's model. He had been eccentric about building a lot of suits since Loki's attack on New York, and was up to Mark 42 as of two days previous. However, that one was yet to be tested and quite frankly, he didn't have the time to with the whole Earth crisis.

Looking up briefly, he saw the Quinjet landing nearby. Guessing that The Hulk was about to come into play, he flew upwards and did a quick survey of the surrounding area. With at least what J.A.R.V.I.S calculated to be one hundred Fire Giants having come through the portal, which now looked ready to start closing, they were at a severe disadvantage, being outnumbered by at least eighty six to one, if they all were on the ground fighting. That did obviously include Steve, Natasha and Clint as well and to involve them would only be more dangerous, since none were either a God, wore thick armour, or had been exposed to gamma radiation that ultimately turned you into an indestructible green rage monster.

London was still burning on top of all of it. Some buildings now so badly damaged from the hellish fire that they had begun to fall apart. Collapsing in on themselves, just like the nerves of the people around them fleeing for their lives, terrified shrieks piercing the dawn. Running to get out of their houses and flats and into the London Underground where the stopped trains dwell, they sought refuge. Upon seeing this, Tony noticed that a heap of Demons and a few Giants were making their way after them, perhaps to try and follow them underground. Not having any of it, the genius took off after them.

"Jarvis!" He began, calling out to his AI, "get me a lock on the Fire Demons; plan the best route of attack to take all of them out at once!"

_"Sir, don't you think that charging in to all of them is perhaps a little dangerous?" The AI questioned, "the probability of coming out of it unscathed is-"_

"Jarvis, I don't want to hear the math right now, I just want a path to follow," the genius told the computerised butler. It was the truth for once that Tony did not want to hear the likelihood of his survival or any other mathematical calculations at this point. People were in danger, he did not have strong enough armour to withstand direct contact from the heat of the Muspelheim for too long and on top of all that, there was no time to waste on too much strategy at the moment. The only strategy he would follow now except run and gun as it were, was any that Cap came up with, since that was his area of expertise.

_"Very well, sir," J.A.R.V.I.S replied._

Inside the suit, Tony saw a flight path come up on his heads up display, showing when and where he should turn and pull in and out of dives. Deciding that it worked well enough, he put it into action, first flying around Saint Paul's cathedral and then turning in the air while descending into a dive. A few seconds after that, he came across the group of Demons, the Giants just slightly behind them and was only around ten feet from the ground. From then on, everything seemed to move in slow motion for the genius. The faces of the Demons were highlighted with targets and an attack order. Stretching out his arms, he fired blasts at the two either side of him, before rolling over in midair so his back faced the ground and firing two blasts behind him. Though in this roll, he had kept his momentum, so he turned once more into his usual flying position and had his left arm out in front of him and slightly to the left, while his right was pointed out more behind him in a south east direction.

After firing two more repulsor blasts, he looked at the last four targets he had to take out. He blasted one with his right, then another two with both hands before coming to the last of the Demons and taking it out with a double hand blast. Having completed stage one of his task, he then moved on to the harder part of it; the Giants. Continuing with his flight path, he pulled upwards into the sky, before performing a high turn, almost moving in an arc and coming back round for his first crack at the Fire Giants.

Increasing his speed, Tony flew directly over to the Giant's head before abruptly stopping and bringing his fist up to strike down on its head. Not his best idea, since the even greater heat of the taller foe left scorch marks on the armoured hand and heated the metal greatly. However, where his repulsors failed, surely some heavy hit would make up for it?

Knowing that there had to be a weak spot for him to be able to get to easier, Tony once again asked J.A.R.V.I.S to do the work for him, "Jarvis, scan for weaknesses."

Several miniature screens and targets came up on the genius' display before one fairly obvious, but hard to get to spot was identified. _"Sir, it appears that only their eyes will prove a critical target, unless you want to risk the armour melting."_

"Not a problem, Jarv," the genius said, his targeting system highlighting the eyes of all five Giants. Every single missile needed to supposedly take the enemies down was primed and ready to fire and so the rockets on his shoulders came out from underneath the gold-titanium plates. He held up his palms, his eyes clearly showing intense focus underneath his faceplate, "Right, let's see what these guys are made of!"

* * *

As soon as it had arrived, the Quinjet had circled the sky looking for a place to land and drop off Bruce. This was of course after the occupants of said jet had gazed upon the blazing fire, the destruction and death going on around them in London. They also noticed Tony taking out a few Giants before flying off to seemingly find more foes to attack. Several scorch marks already covered his armour as he headed into the river for a quick dunking to cool off his suit.

Casting his excellent gaze over the low buildings in the city, Clint now being cooperative and responsive with Steve for the moment due to the crisis, spotted a place to land. "Banner, get ready, we're landing in a sec," he called out to the doctor, who was standing by the back of the plane, getting ready to exit as soon as he could. The Archer shifted the jet downwards and began to land, being careful to land properly to avoid a completely out of control Hulk running rampage.

"Bruce, I doubt this will be an issue with you, but I need to say it anyway; don't let the Hulk attack Loki if you can prevent it. I don't know what it's like when you change, but this is crucial. Unless he does something like kill an innocent, which he doesn't appear to be looking to do, try not to attack him. I don't like having to say these things and I trust you completely, but I just need to be sure," the Captain said, looking straight at the doctor with complete seriousness. His mask had already been pulled over the top half of his head and he looked like he wanted to join the battle along with the others, but was at serious risk of being burned. Being a human, he had about as much resistance to the heat as Loki did, maybe even a little more considering the God's heritage, though he did not know this.

"Don't worry cap, I'll keep it under control," Banner reassured him.

Natasha, sat next to Clint in the cockpit looked over at the Fire Demons that had noticed the Quinjet and enabled the machine gun to be armed and ready to fire if necessary. Raising their bows, they aimed and were ready to fire, but would be more likely to do so once they had landed. Locking a few targets using the computer, she didn't move her eyes away from the fiery enemies. "Barton you need to land this quickly if you don't want us to become fried chicken." She mused, though entirely seriously.

"Very funny," he replied, though more focused on landing in the small space of the building's roof. There was a small bump as the jet touched down, but otherwise the landing had been smooth. "Alright, Banner, move it!" The hatch at the back opened out quickly and Bruce ran out, giving the team enough time to get back in the air again before being shot at.

"Bruce, try and keep the damage minimum if you can!" Steve called out before the hatch closed. He knew it was a long shot and unlikely considering The Hulk's previous records, but this was not their city and since it did belong to someone still so precious to the captain, he did not want to have to ruin it further.

Although the Demons and Giants only had arrows, they suspected that they could do a lot more than just bounce off of the Quinjet. In fact, if Clint's exploding arrows could disorientate Loki, a God for a few seconds, then alien life forms that could destroy the planet had powerful weapons. Even if it did appear that Muspelheim was holding back a lot.

Taking a deep breath, the doctor let down all of the restraints in his mind keeping his anger back. He always restrained a focused sense of anger, leading to him being able to control The Hulk, but to be able to assume this form he had to let down certain barriers in his mind and let the anger flow freely. Doing this, his body began to rapidly grow in size, stretching the seams of his shirt and trousers, ripping the former within a few seconds. His skin turned green and his eyes pulsed a bright, almost neon of the same colour. Walking to the edge of the building with thundering steps, The Hulk instantly created a standstill and got everyone's attention for a few seconds with a wild roar that could be heard from a few miles away.

Thor glanced upwards and upon noticing the only one he had found to rival his brute strength, he smiled before turning serious once again. This battle would surely turn interesting now with Banner being added to the fray. It had looked like it would be long and more difficult than first thought in the Thunder God's eyes when the Giants had entered, but not impossible. Being nowhere near as pessimistic as Loki normally was in these situations, though arguably he was usually right, he had only been to glad at a greater challenge. Yet he was not so blind as he once was; he knew this was to be taken seriously and that lives were at stake. His cocky streak was not gone but it did not rule his judgement either. He was coming closer to kingship each day. All that was left was to prove himself once more. He returned to fighting the gormless Giant in front of him shortly after, noticing that they were thinning out gradually.

Loki meanwhile had not been the most pleased to see the creature that had floored him in one go appear for the battle. Keeping a straight face however, he was not scared, only wary. See, that was the thing with the Trickster, while most called him cowardly for acting like this, he wasn't so much a coward, just 'overly careful' as he would put it. After all, one could never be too careful. He had retreated for a bit, sticking to throwing knives instead of fighting physically. That was what he hated doing after all. Close combat was not suited to Loki unless he was one on one usually and he knew this, but was willing to sacrifice his usual tactics in favour of saving a few lives. Going back to his own battle, he backed away further, closer in the direction of Thor, should anything go wrong. He was near his limits already with the heat and felt close to passing out from it, but his determination kept him going... for now.

Tony, after having taken a nice cooling dip in the lake, now circled above The Hulk, planning out his next attack. He had to admit, even if big green had come into play, he still felt that this battle was going to hit home heavily on all of them. He was not usually one to be so negative, but looking around, this was worse than New York had been and the battle hadn't even lasted half the time of last year's one yet. But already he was down on almost half of his missiles and his armour was suffering draw backs from the continuous heat exposure. It made it worse to cool it down as crudely as he had, but Stark had to keep on fighting at full potential to be of any use. Picking out a couple of Giants as targets, he flew down towards them with the laser in his left gauntlet primed and ready, before firing it straight into their eyes, cutting into the brain and killing the both of them. The same way he had dealt with the others; the eyes were his only real chance of killing them quickly.

Taking a flying leap, The Hulk leapt from the building and landed on to the head of a Giant. Well, landed his fist on the foes head would be a more accurate description, smashing a lot of it in as well. However this in turn had its toll. Despite Hulk's amazing healing capabilities, he retracted his fist from the attack almost instantly after landing a hit, his hand having been severely burned. Yet this served a fairly good purpose too; it had angered The Hulk even further, allowing his strength and capacity to smash things without being affected as much to increase. These little annoying burns he would suffer, would soon make him stronger. As long as Hulk's anger was infinite, so was his strength after all.

* * *

Back in the Quinjet, the two S.H.I.E.L.D Agents and Captain America had given themselves the task of getting any civilians they could find to safety. Since none could engage in direct battle, this was the job best suited for them and looking out of the windows at the winding streets below, they could see many lives that needed saving. Despite the danger, the Fire Brigade, Ambulances and Police forces were all working together to try and save as many lives as they could, even if it should cost their own. Noble hearts resting in the bodies of those who should not have to die for a war they should not have to fight... it saddened Steve the most, even with all the death he had dealt with in his life; this should not be happening and he would do anything in his power to stop it.

Spotting a bunch of innocents taking cover in a small cafe that was completely surrounded, Steve said the first thing that came to mind, "Barton, find somewhere to lower this thing to hover just above the ground near that cafe!" It didn't sound so serious considering the location they were going to, but it was delivered in that exact manner.

Having already seen the people trapped inside, Clint had begun landing, "already on it, cap." He replied, lowering the jet. Their argument earlier seemed to have had no effect on their communication in a crisis like this, which was good, otherwise there would be some devastating consequences.

"Good. Alright, we need to take out the Fire Demons quickly, before more of them come this way. I'll jump out and try and stop them from getting inside. I want you two back up in the sky so you can take them out from the air." The Super Soldier ordered, formulating a quick, easy plan that was sure to work.

"Sounds like a plan, cap, we're good to go if you want to jump out the back," Natasha said, flicking various switches and getting ready to start firing the machine gun attached to the bottom of the jet.

Nodding even though no one was looking at him, the Captain jumped out of the Quinjet, landing on the ground and rolling forwards, he charged towards the doors of the cafe, using his shield to block any incoming arrows. Making it inside the doorway, he looked at the people hiding behind various overturned tables and the counter, who in turn had looked at him, at first scarred if he were the enemy, but soon recognising him as who he was from last year's news. "Stay calm everyone, we'll get you to safety soon." He said, taking his prized shield off of his arm and throwing it at a few of the Demons, knocking their bows out of their hands. This gave Natasha and Clint enough time to get into the air and rain down a storm of bullets upon the fiery enemies.

At the gun on the jet sounded, many plugged their ears, not liking the loud noises that were going off at this time when the sun had barely risen in the sky. It was truly terrible, that these people had been scarred out of their homes at the break of dawn to seek refuge somewhere else, only to get trapped. And while the great fire burned and the Fire Demons murdered too. Many of the children here would be scarred for life, like they had been in the Manhattan incident. In fact, everyone here would have nightmares about this for a long time to come. Why did war always have affect the innocents? The ones who do not even fight always suffer the greatest out of everyone. This world had not learnt peace. After what the Captain had been through to try and strive for more peace, war was now coming from worlds they had never known about, it was an endless cycle. Thor had told him of the tranquillity they had on Asgard, even in the race of warrior Gods there were rarely disturbances of the peace of the Nine Worlds. At least, it had been a while since they had gone to war, a couple of centuries according to the Thunder God. Not long by Aesir standards at all, but to a mortal, that was what they wanted; a peace that lasted more than a decade.

Even Thor had said that always it was the humans that caused the most war in all of the worlds and they fought amongst themselves on top of it. No wonder Loki had set his eyes upon Earth, they were always fighting that it seemed they could be ruled easily with their fractured alliances.

But they had stood together, had they not? In the time of need, the Avengers had all stood together and fought together, despite any previous differences.

There was hope in the hearts of humans somewhere; all they had to do was find it.

When the gunfire stopped, Steve called out to all the people hiding in the shop behind him as the jet landed in front of them, "Okay, it's safe! Everyone, get on the jet quickly!" He watched and counted as everyone got up and ran past him. There were around twenty of them in total. A very tight fit for the Quinjet, but they did not have far to go and could cope with the squeeze for a little while.

Checking to make sure no one was left behind, Steve boarded with them and soon they took off to take the civilians to an entrance to the London Underground, currently the safest place in the city.

* * *

Currently trying to relax in the realm eternal, were The Warrior's Three and Lady Sif all of which were gathered in the armoury, the designated safe spot in the palace to talk about what could be thought of treason within the kingdom. Or at least things that the monarchy would not enjoy hearing. They had chosen this room because they all knew they needed to speak on the same thing after listening to what Odin had told them in the throne room. And everyone, especially the guard knew of the things that had been said, and even the were displeased with it. The unspoken law between all of them; no one asked why anyone went into the armoury after usual training hours, no one saw anything, heard anything and they most definitely did not let any warrior speak treason and such.

It was not like the royal family did not know of this place, well, at least Frigga and Odin didn't. Thor and Loki had come down here many a time to rant and express their views on how the kingdom should be run, what decision should be made. After all, that is what everyone else did to whoever was king. The Allfather was a great King, no one could deny that, but even he made mistakes sometimes, just look at his decision to lie to Loki and for a second time! Utter insanity to all those who knew of it.

Pacing up and down with a frustrated expression was Sif. The other three merely watched her, knowing the dangers of trying to calm down this raging Goddess, after all, she was as deadly as she was beautiful, which made her one of the most dangerous people in the realm. "This is madness!" she finally exclaimed, taking Fandral and Volstagg by surprise, "Surely the Allfather knows that lying to Loki a second time will only cause more conflict and turmoil between him and the entire realm should he find out?"

Speaking up, a rare thing indeed, was Hogun. However, when he did speak, the grim warrior expressed only the wisest words that could be heard of The Warrior's Three, "Do not be so quick to doubt if Loki knows of this deception, Sif."

Turning to him, the Goddess held a questioning look on her beautiful face, an odd occurrence for her indeed "How can you be so sure that he is aware of this?"

"Did you not see?" He questioned back, "We were not the only ones playing our part. Although flawless in his responses to the Allfather's questions and apology, he did allow something to slip, on purpose to see if anyone would notice."

"And you noticed?" Fandral questioned, "Well done my friend! What did he allow you to see, Hogun?" Intrigued, the dashing warrior glanced at his mace wielding friend with a curious look.

The grim warrior looked at the dashing one with an expressionless face, still wondering how the rest of his friends where no so observant as he. At least Sif noticed most of the time what the other two did not, "All of us saw it. Loki let one tear fall from his eye when saying he forgave the King."

_Loki's eyes widened; if anything, he had not expected to receive an apology from Odin at all, let alone to see him give him an apology in front of the entire population of Asgard. "I… I forgive you" the Trickster said, as a tear slid down his left cheek._

"I have seen Loki shed tears only twice before, but on both occasions, and one time he was acting. his tears came from his right eye, not his left like when he was speaking to Odin. He allowed a mistake to see if anyone would know what he knew." That was entirely true. Loki's tears did always come from the right eye, even if he were faking, but this little slip that only one like Hogun, who was always on high guard could have noticed... was this his way of letting them know he knew what was going on? The God of Mischief was smart and of the current generation of warriors on Asgard, he had arguably been blessed with the greatest intelligence. Considered a genius by most, but an unfit warrior too, he was suited to planning out strategies and looking forwards in what consequences certain actions could take. Perhaps he was letting them know that he knew they were acting in certain respects; they were all in a mix of feelings when Odin had told them of his plan initially, not knowing if they could trust Loki and angry enough to kill him if he tried anything, but now they saw something else.

The friend they had once pushed away more often had separated himself from them and thus come out of his shell completely and demanded attention. They had seen some of his true power and had decided it was better to have Loki on the side of Asgard than of any other. After all, he may not be as strong as Thor, but he was still too dangerous to have as an enemy. Plus Sif and the others wanted to redeem themselves for their ignorance.

There was silence for a few seconds, before a guard entered the room, his face unreadable, "Heimdall requests your presence on a matter of urgency."

They all shared a worried look before heading out to the Bifrost, weapons in hand. It was a good thing they had been in the armoury after all.

* * *

The long and gruelling battle or at least it had felt that way, having not yet lasted a couple of hours, had definitely taken its toll on London and The Avengers. The raging fire, only slightly weakened by Thor's blessed rain continued on its path of destruction, burning all in its wake and heating the tarmac on the roads so it was liquid once more. The hellish fire could burn anything, even stone, that was the sheer power of the fires of Muspelheim. This is what Surtur was aiming for it seemed; when he finally arrived to destroy this planet, he would light a fire that could burn the realm until nothing remained and then shortly after, the Earth would fall apart from the attack. There wouldn't even be a dead planet to land on, just a bunch of rocks floating around where it used to be.

They all knew that the fire would need to be put out soon and with the numbers of the small army of Demons and Giants greatly declined, now was the opportune moment to do so.

Looking over at his brother, who was now not so far away from him, Thor called out to the younger God, knowing something the other Avengers did not. As a master sorcerer, Loki could manipulate anything more or less and he had seen him use the water to destroy the Demons earlier and with his power, there was no reason why he could not recreate that on a much larger scale. Only there was, his brother was battle weary, especially from the heat of the area. Thor could understand this himself, having begun to feel a little uncomfortable a few minutes ago, but Loki was on a different level all together. But they had to try and put the fire out, they couldn't just forsake the mortals of this part of Midgard.

"Loki!" Thor bellowed, gaining the Trickster's attention. His face was pale, almost white and beads of sweat were running down his forehead. Never had he looked this tired or ill in his entire life and the older God regretted having to ask this of his brother, who looked like a small gust of wind, could blow him over. He fought his way over to his brother, looking at him dead in the eyes and gripping his left shoulder, "Find a way to extinguish the flames. I will hold them back from attacking you for as long as you need."

The Mischief God nodded and teleported away on to a small building next to the river. Thor's observations had been right, however, there was something no one could see just by looking at his face. The truth be told, Loki had lost his confidence in his magic over the course of this battle, having been casting much weaker spells than usual and getting little effect out of his extensive magical reserves. He would have put this down to being handicapped by the fire, but he knew otherwise; he was not fit for battles like this. Yet he was? He had fought in many wars over the years and had been forced into close combat many times, but this time, why had he lost so much confidence in his abilities?

Why had he lost so much _trust?_

Shaking his head to rid himself of such lies, he struck his right hand out, pointing it to the river and focused on calling upon the energy needed to lift the column of water pictured in his mind. But his head wanted to play games it seemed and ill-mannered thoughts came to surface and redirected the attention needed to cast his spell to them.

Could he, a newly released criminal really turn and help the mortals he had wanted to rule? Their screams, terrible, shrieking screams as they burned in the fire echoed in his head. The woman who had died so her child might live, being reduced to a pile of ashes. The explosions, the dead bodies of mortals lying beside burning buildings, their corpses littered with arrows. The dead, lifeless eyes which someone would have once adored gazing into.

The pain. The suffering. The screams.

They would not go away.

 _You cannot do good, Mischief God. Stop trying to fight against your true nature and sit back. Relish in their deaths. It was they who cast you away from their realm, was it not?_ A voice echoed in his head, causing Loki's focus to be lost even further. How could his mind be invaded by this person now? He thought that the link had been severed long ago, why was this happening?

_Watch them suffer as you suffered, for so long. There is no golden heart that rests within your chest as you so humbly believe... you should know by now, Trickster, that you are an agent of chaos. Death is your ultimate pleasure; give in to your dark desires, become a force to be reckoned with once more. Slay them! Slay them all!_

_BATHE IN THEIR BLOOD UNTIL ALL THAT REMAINS IS A PILE OF ROTTING CORPSES-_

"Enough!" Loki yelled, though no one looked up at him. Shaking his head once more, he closed his eyes and pressed his left hand to his temple. He was desperate now; the tone of his voice had said it all. He wanted the water to rise from the river, he knew how to do it, but why couldn't he? The voice that had echoed in his head had disappeared but his mind was in disarray.

 _What is happening? Why can I not raise a simple column of water?_ Panicking he looked over at the river, noticing that it did not even stir at his command. What _was_ happening?

Before he had time to react, a Giant suddenly appeared before him and swatted him on to the ground, luckily not touching any of his skin. Since they were the same size as Frost Giants, they were roughly a bit taller than double the size of an Asgardian, but were still able to swat those smaller than them away like flies. Getting to his feet with a very ungraceful stumble, Loki saw three Demons with loaded bows all pointed at him. With wide eyes, he realised that he recognised the arrows on their bows as a special type known only to Muspelheim which were released before he had a chance to do anything.

All three hit their target; one just barely missed his heart, resting just above it inside his chest. The other two hit his stomach. But one thing was common between all of the arrows; they had all been heated and burned the Trickster's insides. He stumbled backwards when he was hit, looking down at the large black shafts that protruded from his body. He held out the palms of his hands, moving to try and grip one of the arrows to remove it, but he fell backwards and hit the ground before he could muster the strength to do so.

Looking up at the clouds that had gathered in the sky well over two hours ago, he wondered if this would be his last moments. The arrows burned his insides, but did not hurt as much as they should. He blinked away a few raindrops from his eyes, before gazing into the pure black eyes of the Giant that had knocked him to the ground in the first place.

Everywhere else, all of Muspelheim's remaining forces just vanished as if they had never been there. The team stopped in their attacks, wondering why this was. Seeing his chance, The Hulk ran to the fire and brought his arms out in front of him to clap, the noise sounding similar to the Thunder that Thor had been summoning in this battle. The winds created by this blew the flames into nonexistence, ending the biggest threat to London, much to the joy of everyone in the city and most of the world in fact.

However, there still was one issue. The only remaining Giant was the one towering over the God of Mischief, who still lay upon the wet ground, gravely injured and defenceless.

"The great Surtur sends you a message, Odinson," It said, a deep, gravelly voice leaving its grinning lips. The Giant looked down upon the Trickster with amusement at his weakness, knowing his master would be pleased. "He sends you a promise of death." Crouching down, the Giant grabbed Loki's throat and hoisted his upper body off of the ground slightly, making skin contact with the God which caused him to receive a severe burn, finally making him scream in pain like the enemy creating this pain had wanted. He squeezed his eyes shut and tried to ignore the cindering sensation he was feeling upon his neck.

Not so far away, Thor had been searching for his brother, knowing that something must have gone gravely wrong for him to have been unable to summon a column of water from the river. Hearing a familiar shriek in the air, he spun around to see his brother in the hands of a Giant. He also spotted the arrows sticking out of his body and his gut wrenched in worry. "Loki!" He exclaimed, gaining the attention of the Giant for a second. Enraged, he charged at the foe, ready to throw Mjolnir at its head.

Looking back at the God of Mischief, Surtur's messenger imparted his final words, "At dusk, five days from now, Surtur will hail upon the city you tried to take in your attempts to conquer this realm. He will destroy it and burn Midgard into nothing. Trickster, the great Surtur invites you to witness the end of the Earth, if you survive to see it, that it." Chuckling, it released Loki, letting him drop to the floor. Remarkably, the younger God was still conscious at this point, his right hand which twitched as the God tried to command it to move rested limply on his stomach, just below one of the arrows in his gut.

Throwing his hammer at the Giant, Thor was at first angered when it disappeared before Mjolnir could make contact. This was soon replaced with worry however as he ran to Loki's side. Having heard what the foe had said to his brother, it surprised the Thunder God that despite his many wounds, the first thing Loki said was a reminder of what the Giant had said.

"Thor... in five days... at dusk... Surtur will come," he spoke in a very hoarse tone, obviously pained to speak because of the burns he had received.

"I know, Loki." The Thunderer replied. He crouched next to his brother, his hands on his shoulders as he assessed Loki's wounds. "Do not try to speak, conserve your strength." Never had his brother been so injured in battle, at least not like this. He had taken a beating from The Hulk, but the only wounds he had hot from that were mere scratches. These were far more serious and while not fatal to an Aesir, it was safe to say one thing.

Loki was no Aesir. He was a Frost Giant and attacks from the Fire Demons injured him more than any Asgardian.

Summoning the strength to speak once more, despite what he had been told the Trickster gained Thor's attention enough to have him spare a glance from his wounds to his face, "Brother... you should know... the arrows... they are not-" he was cut off by a coughing fit which started up suddenly and pained his entire body as it caused him to have to move.

His eyes closed and his head lolled towards Thor, a streak of blood running down the side of his mouth.

Panicking, Thor shook the Trickster gently, hoping this was not a joke, "Brother?" He said, trying to get the Mischief God to open his eyes, which he did not. Shaking him again, a little harder this time, the Thunder God's worry grew, "Loki!"

He received no response.


	8. The Arrows of Sinmara

Avengers Assemble: Loki's Redemption

Chapter 8: The Arrows of Sinmara

_Loki was no Aesir. He was a Frost Giant and attacks from the Fire Demons injured him more than any Asgardian._

_Summoning the strength to speak once more, despite what he had been told the Trickster gained Thor's attention enough to have him spare a glance from his wounds to his face, "Brother... you should know... the arrows... they are not-" he was cut off by a coughing fit which started up suddenly and pained his entire body as it caused him to have to move._

_His eyes closed and his head lolled towards Thor, a streak of blood running down the side of his mouth._

_Panicking, Thor shook the Trickster gently, hoping this was not a joke, "Brother?" He said, trying to get the Mischief God to open his eyes, which he did not. Shaking him again, a little harder this time, the Thunder God's worry grew, "Loki!"_

_He received no response._

The Crown Prince kept shaking Loki gently until he managed to gain some form of response out of him; he did open his eyes slightly, but that was about it. He might not have even regained a little consciousness, but it was something to ease Thor's mind and allow him to calm himself. He had to think clearly; the battle was over because Muspelheim's forces had been withdrawn from battle somehow. As far as he could tell, the fire had been put out since the atmosphere was beginning to cool down a little. But most importantly, Loki had been heavily injured by a Giant that had not only managed to slip past Thor, but also sneak up on his brother a task not many could achieve. He wanted to know how it had been possible and how all of the foes had simply disappeared, however his only focus right now was the injured God lying on the ground next to where he crouched.

Hearing the Quinjet land not so far away from him, Thor gradually heard each Avenger arrive by whatever means of travel they chose. Of course Rogers, Barton and Natasha had come in the jet after saving the last of the civilians they could find. Stark arrived in his armour a few seconds later, the audible metal hitting the ground giving him away. The Hulk was last to appear on scene, soon quickly shrinking down into the weedy doctor, Bruce Banner, who was soon directed to get to the Quinjet so he could put on a spare set of clothes. Yet as all of this was going on, only two of the other Avengers approached the two Gods; Steve and Tony.

"What the hell happened?" Steve questioned with concern, coming up beside Thor and the heavily injured Loki. He saw just how hard it was for the pair of them to be injured; he had fought the God of Mischief and not even fazed him with any of his punches and even after The hulk had tossed him around like a rag doll, he had got up not so long after with only a few scratches on his face and hands. And Thor... well, apart from being stabbed by Loki he had suffered only a couple of scrapes and had battled as if he hadn't taken a knife to his gut. It seemed that these two could only primarily be taken down by members of their own race, or others with superhuman strength.

Yet why had Loki been the only one out of all of them to be injured so badly?

Not looking up from his brother and now examining the arrows in his body, the Thunder God replied his tone showing how focused he was, "He was struck by a Giant while off-guard. Forgive me when I say this, Rogers, there is much more to explain but right now my brother is the one who requires my attention," an unexpectedly calm Thor replied. After a few more seconds at looking at the arrow flights, he realised just how dire the situation was; they had to move Loki now, to a spot where he could separate the arrows from his brother's body and hopefully save his life. They had around seven minutes if they wanted to stretch it before the God of Mischief could end up being just another casualty of the battle.

Thor was about to ask the captain to assist him, the man probably being the only one who would help, but he and the Avengers gathered around were suddenly distracted by the sounds of the Bifrost opening above them.

The Thunderer sincerely hoped it was someone from Asgard who was proficient in magic or someone that he knew well, so they had a better chance of helping Loki, but to his surprise, those who landed happened to be the people he could have hoped for, even if they knew not one healing spell.

The Warrior's Three and the Lady Sif emerged from the swirling rainbow clouds of the Bifrost bridge, fully armoured and ready to fight a battle. . . that was already over. Spotting Thor, they dashed past the confused Avengers and over to their friend, eyes raising concern when they saw Loki's condition.

"By the norns, what happened?" Volstagg questioned, looking not only at the arrows but also at the burns on the Trickster's neck. He remembered very clearly the time not so long ago when he had received an ice burn from a Frost Giant in Jotunheim, but that looked like nothing compared with the state of Loki's neck. The flesh on his throat had been so severely burned that it had turned to a charred black in some parts, the others being angry red and leaking blood where the Giant had dug in its fingernails. No wonder it had been hard for him to speak; the fact that he had was amazing in its self when you looked at all the wounds he had received. Of course, the newly arrived Aesir didn't know this.

"There is no time to explain, Volstagg; we have little more than a few minutes before Loki could pass on to Valhalla!" Looking up at the other Avengers, the Thunder God asked them a very important question in a hurried tone, "My friends, even though he is still your enemy, would you help him this once?" There was a small silence and a few shared glances, but Steve gave him a nod soon after; if they wanted Loki to stay on their side in the future, they had to help him after all. Plus he had a few questions he wanted to ask the God of Mischief and he couldn't do that if he was dead, could he?

"Fandral, help me get him inside!" Thor said, sliding his left arm under his brother's back and arms and the other over his chest, being careful to avoid the arrows. The mentioned warrior obeyed and did the same to the Trickster's legs. They picked him up shortly after and carried him in this way so they could keep him straight and not aggravate his wounds any further. Sif grabbed his staff and took it inside with her. They went into a nearby coffee shop, which strangely, had all of the tools that Thor knew he needed inside. The others followed quickly, sending questionable looks towards the Thunder God.

All except one of them went inside. Barton claimed that he was going to keep an eye on the Quinjet, but all of them knew that he just didn't want to be in the same room as Loki at all if he could manage it. So instead, the archer stood outside against the wall with his arms folded. _I bet he let himself get injured, the bastard,_ the archer thought.

Once inside, they laid the Mischief God out on a table long enough to fit his entire body on, but not before clearing it of cups and such first, which smashed to the floor. They would pay for the damage later, but a wounded man, even if he was a reforming villain was more important than a few pieces of china.

"Thor, is there anything you need?" Steve asked, ready to help and encourage the others to do so as well. He knew that after him, the next most likely people to help would be Bruce and Tony, then Natasha. Barton had already made it clear that he wanted nothing to do with Loki and cared little weather he lived or died, even if it meant that Earth was more likely to survive Surtur's attack if he lived.

"Hot and cold water, Rogers and a clean cloth," Thor replied, checking the burns on his brother's neck. Sif came up to stand opposite him after resting Loki's staff against a nearby wall, sliding in next to Fandral, looking down at her injured friend on the table. He was awake, a good thing if they wanted to keep an eye on his condition and see how much time they had left to save him. It pained the War Goddess to see him like this, however. From Heimdall they heard what a difficult battle the two princes had been fighting and Sif knew that Loki's weakness to heat had played a massive part in how he had become injured, but he should have been able to cast a spell to help himself get away, so what went wrong?

To Steve's surprise, Natasha spoke up, "I'll get those," she replied, walking off behind the counter to boil the kettle.

Closely examining the arrow flights stuck to the shafts, Fandral's expression turned so grim, it rivalled that of Hogun's. The flights were jet black, much like all of the others, but one thing clearly showed that these arrows were different; a small red line on each of the three feathers which pointed downwards at an angle. Frowning he glanced up at Thor, who gave him a look which told the dashing warrior that he already knew of something everyone else did not.

Noticing this, Tony spoke up, "What is it? What's wrong?" He would not admit that he was _slightly_ concerned about the state that the God was in, considering the fact he could get up after being smashed by The Hulk on the floor quite a few times. But now he could see that even Asgardians weren't invulnerable to everything, however it seems that it took something not of Earth to almost kill one of them. Tony made a note to never have a war with a race of super powered warrior Gods in the foreseeable future.

Speaking up, Thor turned his head to face that of the genius, "These are the arrows of Sinmara, Stark." Sif gasped slightly and looked up at the God of Thunder, who did not meet her eyes. The other members of The Warriors Three wore grim and worrisome expressions too at this. However, the Avengers obviously did not understand what this actually meant.

"Yeah, what's that in English?" Stark asked, wondering how dire the situation actually was.

"Sinmara's arrows are fatal, even to Asgardians." Thor said in a solemn tone, "Although I do not understand one thing; the arrows grow more potent when more of them strike their targets. By rights Loki should already be dead." He explained, a little confused at this, but also overjoyed that his brother still lived. He did suspect that there was something going on that was helping him stay alive, however. He had thought of the Trickster's magic being a factor to aid him, but he did not sense anything of the sort on Loki, so it could not be that. Whatever it was, they would find out soon enough.

"But the fact he's alive is good, right?" Steve butted in.

The God of Thunder seemed not to know what to reply, "If all is as it seems and as I hope, then yes, Rogers, his survival is a miracle." He said cryptically.

"Wait, what do you mean by-" the soldier was cut off by Loki, who erupted into another coughing fit, causing his body to jerk and agitate his wounds, which hurt him even further. More sanguine liquid touched his lips and ran down the corners of his mouth, his eyes closing having only been slightly open.

"Hold him down!" Thor commanded. The others didn't need to be told twice, Fandral and Hogun pinned his arms down while Volstagg placed all of his weight, a copious amount indeed, on his legs. "We have no time to waste, the arrows must be removed now," Everyone else in the room came to gather around the table, trying to be of any help if they could.

"Thor, you know it could kill him if we do not have any boiling water!" Sif exclaimed. One hand rested gently on Loki's chest and the other on the table as she helped restrain the injured prince.

"There is no other choice!" Thor replied, gripping the shaft of the arrow that had struck just above his brother's heart, his other hand on the Mischief God's chest, near Sif's hand. He was about to yank the arrow out when he heard a voice come from behind him.

"Got your hot water, guys," Natasha said, coming forward a few seconds later, carrying two bowls of water and a clean dish cloth. She set them down on a table beside the Thunder God, before standing beside Stark and leaning over to look at what was about to happen herself.

The God of Thunder nodded his thanks and then looked at his Aesir friends, silently telling them to brace and pin down Loki for what was to come. They did all watching with anxiety and Fandral tightened his hold on Trickster's arm, putting more pressure on holding down his left shoulder. Hogun did the same with his right, but did not convey such a nervous look at his fellow warriors did. The tense atmosphere in the room only grew thicker as everyone prepared for the worst outcome.

There came a painful silence in the coffee shop.

Grabbing the shaft more tightly now, Thor glanced down at Loki muttering a quick apology, "Forgive me, brother," he said, before pulling out the first arrow. The God of Mischief cried out in pain and his back attempted to arch, but the force of the Aesir warriors pinning him down prevented that. He gritted his teeth, now clearly more conscious than he had been before and aware of the deep, throbbing pain coursing through his body. It was difficult to keep him on the table as he struggled to move. Despite appearances, Loki was in fact stronger than he looked; at least that is how the Asgardians saw it. Any human would just consider his strength normal for his godly status and because of his height and menacing looks, he appeared strong to any mortal.

Looking at the end of the arrow, Thor's eyes were met by something that was truly unexpected. The Asgardians all stared at each other, sharing quizzical looks, before one of them managed to speak up.

"Odin's blood...!" Volstagg said in awe, "What manner of sorcery is this?" He questioned.

"This is not the work of magic, Volstagg," Fandral began, "But it is truly remarkable,"

"What? What is it?" Steve asked, unsure if they were reacting badly to something or well. Every other Avenger was just as confused as he was since none of them knew what the Arrows of Sinmara could actually do. If they were fatal to Asgardians, then surely that posed bad to Loki? Yet even as their faces were quite unreadable, the captain had an inkling of a thought that they were relived about something.

Breathing a sigh of utter relief, Thor placed the first arrow down and looked at the shield-bearer, "Something truly akin to a miracle, Rogers."

Thor was quick to prepare to remove the other two arrows from Loki's body. The warriors put all their force into holding the God down once more, and the Crown Prince took hold of another shaft, before pulling it out. The same reaction came out of his brother and Sif began to run a hand through his hair, trying to calm him. Looking at the arrow once more, he found the same conclusion as the last.

Eventually, they removed the last of the arrows and the Aesir warriors seemed relieved, even though Loki was still bleeding out on the table. However, it could be seen that his wounds were already beginning to heal, except the one of his neck that still looked the same. Sif took out a healing stone from one of the small pouches on her armour and crumbled it over the arrow wound that had pierced the Mischief God's lung just above his heart. Although he was healing at a rapid pace, none of them wanted to risk anything and it should prevent him from coughing up blood and paining himself more.

Now that everything had calmed down, Thor left his friends to take care of his brother, now turning to face the confused Avengers that knew nothing about what all the fuss was. It wasn't that he was no longer concerned for Loki, but that he trusted his Aesir friends and had to explain himself to his mortal ones. He would have continued to tend to his brother's wounds had the situation been different.

"Thor, would you mind explaining to us what the hell just happened in a way we understand?" Tony asked.

Smiling a little, the Thunder God was only too happy to oblige, "I am sorry, friends. The situation clouded most logical thought from my mind. Of course I shall explain." Taking one of the discarded arrows still covered in Loki's blood, he held it up before them, "These are the arrows of Sinmara and they are forged generally for only one purpose; killing Asgardians. Let it be known my friends, there is little other than our own weapons that can kill us throughout the realms, though our enemies develop new ideas every century. As you saw last year, the greatest injury I sustained was dealt in a short battle with Loki, instead of the much more lengthy battle with the Chitauri."

"However, these arrows are able to kill an Asgardian no matter where they strike. The reason for this is simple; the arrow heads are made from a metal which melts upon direct contact with warm blood, releasing a deadly poison which multiplies as it courses through the veins, eventually turning the blood into solid metal." The God of Thunder explained, "Naturally, the more arrows that hit, the quicker one dies. In the past, it has not gone unheard of that Aesir have died simply by being shot by one of these arrows. Without proper aid, any one of us could die."

"So how come Loki isn't dead?" Bruce asked with genuine interest. If it were so true that one arrow could kill an Aesir, then why had the Mischief God survived three? More importantly, why hadn't the arrow heads melted?

"The arrow heads did not melt when they made contact with his blood," Thor answered. Still in questioning why his brother was alive himself, he had but one idea as to how it could be. And he knew Loki would not like it one bit.

"Say they did melt into his bloodstream, how would you have saved him then?" Steve questioned.

Picking up the other two arrows, Thor turned around to the bowl of hot water and demonstrated, "Watch," he placed the heads of the arrows into the water. Almost instantly, they melted, leaving a silvery liquid to sink to the bottom which dissolved before it could reach the base of the glass bowl, "Water is somehow the best counter to the poison and is even better when it is hot."

Speaking up, Natasha asked what everyone wanted to know, "Why didn't they melt then?"

Thor looked away at first, over towards his brother who was now having ointment poured over the burn on his neck. He was now unconscious however, and did not feel the pain of it as much, which was a relief. He turned back to his friends, sighing, "Loki is not an Asgardian. He is not truly born to the name of Odinson, but rather that of the late King Laufey, of the Frost Giants, our greatest enemy. He is Loki Laufeyson in birth name and heir to the throne of the realm Jotunheim."

* * *

A seething rage was the only way to describe the emotion that Frigga, Queen of Asgard was feeling at this moment. As she strolled through the halls of the palace all those who saw her instantly moved out her path, knowing full well the fury and power of the seemingly gentle Queen. Even the guards felt fear course through them as she approached the one place she knew that Odin currently occupied. Storming into the throne room it clearly became apparent that Thor's legendary anger did not come from his father alone. Coming to stop just before the dais she wasted no time in getting to the point, "Heimdall has just informed me of the events on Midgard, though you know what transpired already, do you not?!" She accused. The guards in the room left after being nodded to by the Allfather, though it secretly they knew that they would have left soon in an act of self-preservation.

"What did you do to our son?" Frigga questioned. After receiving no reply from Odin yet again, she let her anger get the better of her for one moment, "Tell me!" She said desperately. All the Queen wanted was to know Loki's condition, or at least the condition of his magic. With Heimdall reporting to her that he had failed in whatever spell he was trying to perform, that had worried her, for her youngest's magic had never once failed him when he had commanded it like the words that leave his lips. The only explanation was that something had gone wrong, "What curse have you placed upon Loki?"

"One of trust." Odin replied, his tone void of all emotion, like his face. He looked upon his furious and distressed wife, who seemed to have recently learned of the lies he had told Loki. That much could be seen in her eyes.

"When did you do this? Why did you do it?" Frigga asked sharply.

The Alfather's expression did not change despite the way his own wife spoke to him, "At his release ceremony, when I released the restrains of Loki's magic and it returned to him, in place of the restrictions I placed upon him a curse of trust, though the effects of cannot be felt until certain circumstances allow it to be."

"And they have been felt, Odin. For right now, _our_ _youngest son_ lies injured on Midgard; he is lucky to even live. For once I thank the norns that he is not of our blood, for if he was Loki could be residing in Valhalla right now." Pausing to take a break, Frigga wondered just how her husband had managed to trick her into thinking that he was releasing Loki merely on the whim that he had served his sentence? How could she have been so blind? "Why would you do this to our son?" She asked once more and Jotunheim would thaw out, dare she have to ask a third time.

"To teach Loki what it means to trust." Odin answered, standing up; he would not tolerate his wife speaking to him in such a manner for very long at all, "If one cannot trust themselves then how can they trust others? The reason Loki was unable to use his magic on Midgard for a brief time was due to the fact he lost trust within himself. Thus his powers were barred to him. Loki does not know how to trust properly, if I can teach him to trust from the beginning once more, then truly we can rebuild this family."

"For what purpose does lying to him serve? Placing him under a false sense that you trust him will only tear him further away from you when he finds out, if he does not already know of your trickery. Cursing his powers only adds more wood to the fire, Odin." The Queen argued, not fazed in the slightest that her husband had now risen from his throne to appear more imposing.

"And how could Loki learn of this? Sif and The Warrior's Three will not tell him, they swore it to me days ago. Thor does not know either. So tell me, how in Bor's name could he find out?!" Odin said, raising his voice. He had no sliver tongue like his adopted son, who could argue endlessly until Ragnarok, but he could stand by his point well enough and he was not going to be talked down by Frigga.

"You underestimate him greatly, as you have done much over his life! Do not forget that he could fool the entire realm with one of his acts if he needed to. He could pick apart your words and weed out the lies like one does a garden. And even if he knew not, one of his friends would tell him. Their loyalty is undeniable, but their friendship extends even deeper than that. For the good of this realm it is better that he knows and I believe that he does know of your lies, but by his own mind figuring it out in some manner!" Frigga countered, raising her tone to match the Allfather's, "Did you not think for one second that releasing him after just one mortal year, returning to him his magic, title and gifting him with a new staff would be strange to him?! That he would not suspect something? What happened to you, wise king? For this does not seem a very _wise_ plan to me!"

"Loki's villainy is what fuelled me to have to do this! I do not like it any more than you, but it is necessary if I ever wish to trust him again-"

"There is more to Loki's actions than what first meets the eye!" She exclaimed. Calming herself, Frigga turned to leave, having had enough with the King; her and Odin could argue this matter for the entire day if they wished, but the Queen only wanted to make her words a lasting impression on the Allfather, "Think about what you are doing, please," her voice begged, but her back was turned, "Carry on in this manner and our family will only be torn apart further."

And with that Frigga left the throne room and the protesting Odin to his thoughts.

* * *

"So Loki fell into a wormhole and you didn't see him until last year, thinking that he was dead," Bruce said, repeating the last of what Thor and the others had just told them.

The Aesir nodded in reply solemnly.

Barton had come back into the room for the story; well he had been dragged in to hear it by Natasha more like, but had lurked near the back of the group as they had listened. He cared little for the Mischief God, that was known, but to hear Thor's side of the story was interesting, since he remembered almost shooting him two years ago. Not that the Thunder God knew this of course and nor did he particularly need to.

The other Avengers however felt very much like these events almost perfectly dictated what Loki had done, well at least Steve believed it very strongly along with Bruce. Of course they were not valid reasons at all for what he had done to Earth and its people, they just explained his anger and lust for power. Or at least to a certain degree. Who truly knew the reasons behind these acts other than the Trickster himself? What had really happened after he had left the void? For looking back on his explanation, even the great words born of Loki's silver tongue did not seem to fit all that well...

_"No, their leader is a being whose mentality is currently far worse than my own. A mad titan obsessed with death, and has the power to bestow enslavement on almost any mind. That is the Chitauri leader, Thanos." Loki explained, his words dripping with malice and hate. "At the time, he offered me something that I could not refuse; a chance to once again be King of a realm that I would choose. I would have absolute power and a chance to prove myself in battle against Thor once again."_

_"I accepted the offer almost immediately, oblivious to what the consequences would_ _be."_

Loki didn't seem like the type to let his words slip and his anger rule his tone of voice that easily; lying and deception was his most notable trait and was woven in to his very bones. Yet it appeared as if he had deliberately played out his words in this manner in the hope of either confusing them, or to even have them discover this later... it was all so puzzling really. Steve wondered what the God of Mischief's intentions were; was he lying to them or hinting at a darker truth? Because the words, " _bestow enslavement on almost any mind"_ seemed to stick in the captain's head. A minor detail like that was surely an important one, they always were. Thinking harder he came to a few conclusions, but had no idea which one of them could be true.

Had Loki been under this being's control? His mind not of his own much like what he had done to Clint? Or had his emotions merely been influenced and given enough of a push to spur him into these actions?

Because other than that, the only reason left was that he must be lying.

Snapping out of his thoughts, the captain focused back on the conversation, which had seemingly come to an end. Natasha was currently talking to Fury on the comm. link in her ear, explaining the entire situation, or at least what they were doing now since the battle had ended around half an hour ago. Though the reason they hadn't moved from the coffee shop, now figured out after all the commotion to be in fact a Costa, was in fact to give Loki a break from the pain, even if he was in a stable condition now.

Turning to Tony, he saw that the usually talkative man was silent for the moment, "What's going to happen now?" He asked.

"You tell me, you're the captain."

Sighing, Steve pinched the bridge of his nose, "Okay," he said loudly this time, gaining everyone's attention, "Barton, fire up the Quinjet. We need to leave and report back to Fury." The archer was only too happy to oblige, having grown bored and sick of being stuck doing nothing for ages. Once he had gone, the soldier turned to everyone else, "Right, you four," he pointed to Sif and the others, "I'm sorry, I didn't catch your names."

"Forgive our rudeness," Volstagg said, "This is the Lady Sif," he introduced, gesturing to the Goddess, "and we are The Warrior's Three. Volstagg is my name, and this is Fandral," He pointed to the smiling blonde, "and Hogun," he indicated the grim warrior, whose face was, well... grim really.

"Thanks. You're here to help us, right?" Steve questioned.

"Of course! What reputation would we be able to hold as warriors if we would allow Thor to charge into a war without us?" Fandral questioned. He looked as if he was trying to retrieve is normally chirpy nature, but in the light of the recent events, even his joyful tone seemed forced, which it was.

"Good. Natasha, what's the deal with Fury?"

Now having explained the situation to the director, the woman looked up at Steve, her face neutral like it usually was, "He knows about what happened. He says we should get back to the helicarrier and rest for a few hours."

Nodding, the captain addressed everyone, "Alright, everyone get to the Quinjet; it's going to be a tight fit, but we'll have to manage." Muttering their agreements, the Avengers began making their way out and into the jet, the Aesir not far behind them, with Thor and Fandral carrying Loki so his body was straight. As they all made their way inside, it was indeed a tight fit, but there was still some room about. After a minute of shuffling, everyone was seated or standing, with the Mischief God having been placed on a stretcher on the floor to make moving him easier. Going to the cockpit, Steve leaned over to speak to Clint with Natasha already in her seat, "You ready to take off, Barton."

"Yeah, I'm just a little worried if the jet can handle the extra weight, that's all," he joked quietly, looking back at Volstagg.

Steve chuckled a little, glad that the archer was acting a little more light hearted, "Just get us moving."

Clint silently did so, as soon enough the Quinjet had risen into the sky and taken off back to the helicarrier.

* * *

Finishing his conversation with Natasha, the director turned around to Coulson and Hill, his face unreadable. They had all had a live feed of what was going on not just in the news broadcast but also from the Quinjet that had been taken there and with Agent Romanoff's information, Nick had just about all the reason he needed to say these next words, "We have five days until Surtur comes to try and end the world. Agent Hill, notify the president and put the word out to the government that they will begin evacuating Manhattan in two days, no questions asked." Fury commanded.

"Yes sir," the Agent replied, walking off to one of the other Agents on the bridge.

"Coulson, I want you to keep tabs on everyone, including Thor's new friends from Asgard. Something tells me that they might just not come back here straight away." The director ordered.

"What if they don't come back here? Will you let them go stay at Stark's? Because that's where they'll probably go.

Nodding, Fury looked at his right hand man in the eye, "Yeah, I'll let them take a break. They need it for what's coming, because some of them may not make it out of there alive."

* * *

Having been in the Quinjet for around an hour now, the team and the Aesir were nearing the space in which the helicarrier was occupying, which was near the city of New York. It was still early in the morning there, around four to be precise, but S.H.I.E.L.D had obviously been on high alert for most of the night and thus, that Agents were only really beginning to get to bed. Those working on the late shifts were also only starting to take over, although they had been awake and ready for most of the night, so the sleeping patterns of all on board were rather messed up really.

Aboard the Quinjet the same kind of problem had risen amongst some; Clint was required to keep awake so he could fly the jet anyway and appeared to be fine, though there were slight dark rings under his eyes. Natasha was also okay, but she was clearly more tired than the archer. Nevertheless, she was faring far better than Bruce, who in his exhaustion from becoming The Hulk and transforming back again, had nodded off in his seat next to Steve, who was as vigilant as ever. Tony was fine, having spent many nights with little sleep in his life for a limited variety of reasons.

The Aesir warriors, having not even fought any of the battle apart from Thor obviously, all looked like they could go ten rounds with the Fire Demons and Giants. Even the God of Thunder didn't look tired one bit and he had most likely been fighting the longest out of all of them. Still, he was a God after all, or rather, Asgardian. Of course, Loki was still unconscious however, but after being hit by three arrows and having his neck half cindered, he had every right to be.

Throughout the flight, it had been rather silent amongst many, most of the Avengers contemplating what had just happened in London. However, it was to be noted that several different people had to stop Fandral and Volstagg from curiously pressing any of the buttons they could find quite a few times. They were just curious, that could be seen but if one of them were to pull the lever that deployed the emergency parachutes, everyone would be in a spot of bother. Other than that, the only other conversation had been between Thor and his friends, with a few introductions being made between them and the mortals.

But now as they drew close to landing, everyone was more awake and more aware of their surroundings.

Rubbing his eyes and looking around at the others around him, Bruce was the first in a while to speak, "You know what, I think we all need a little time to get our heads straight and relax," he said tiredly.

"And figure out our battle plan for Friday." Steve added.

Having sat down finally for the past half an hour, Stark spoke up from his seat next to the doctor, "Guys, well mainly Bruce, you read my mind," Tony started. Steve rolled his eyes at the comment, now being the only one to be standing up, mindful of the God of Mischief laid out on the floor, "Hey bird brain." The genius taunted.

Grimacing at the name, the Archer looked over his shoulder in the Quinjet at Stark with annoyance, "What?"

"Land this thing on the tower, would you?"

"Do you think we'll be allowed? Doesn't Fury want us back so we can discuss what happened?" Steve asked, looking at Clint.

"We're not high school kids, Rogers." No brownie points for who said that, "Besides, we were never told to go back to the helicarrier once we were done." Stark finished.

"He should be fine with it," Natasha started, gaining everyone's attention, "I'll clear it with him, but I think he wants us to go relax after what just happened."

"Okay," the soldier replied, admittedly wanting some sleep and quiet time away from S.H.I.E.L.D himself.

"So to the tower then?" Clint asked from the cockpit.

"Yep, but land on the roof with care, Katniss. I just had it reconstructed a few weeks ago." Tony said.

"Why, did you have a wild party?"

The genius snickered, "Something like that."

Smirking a little, Barton directed the Quinjet to fly straight past the helicarrier and on towards Stark Tower.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, the not so good chapter eight, hope you enjoyed! Thanks for all your support, I really do appreciate it! Updates will now become a little harder for me to do since I start college tomorrow, but I'll try to still be weekly!
> 
> Thanks for reading!


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